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Stelmach keen on having project-specific bonds

The Alberta government has started talking about an idea that dates back to the Depression years — selling the public savings bonds to help finance building projects.

EDMONTON — The Alberta government has started talking about an idea that dates back to the Depression years — selling the public savings bonds to help finance building projects.

Premier Ed Stelmach says he favours a plan that would earmark bonds for individual large projects rather than just creating a pool of money.

A spokesman for the premier says the idea is still in the talking stage, so no decision has been made on rates of return or other key issues.

The premier says he believes Albertans are hungry for something to invest in, so the idea of selling bonds makes good sense.

Stelmach says people he’s talked with about the bonds also think it would be a good idea to allow people to invest in their own province.

One of the selling points of the bonds is that they would be guaranteed by the government in what Stelmach describes as “the most stable financial jurisdiction in North America.”