Doug's Blog
Podcast online and a mish-mash
I am really sorry that I have been absent for a bit. Last week was a constituency week and driving all over the country and spending time with my family wasn't very conducive to writing a regular blog, and of course, now I have so much to report.
To begin with I would like to remind all of about the interview I did with Archie McLean of the Edmonton Journal on the use of social media for communication. The podcast is only available online and can be listened to in its entirety at www.journalexpress.com/podcast/lejoutloud/17_lej_griffiths.mp3
Well, many things have happened this week. The second quarter estimates came out and, although they are not all roses and wine, if you were to take a moment to review the financial outlook of almost every other jurisdiction in the land you would note that ours is the rosiest of pictures in a pretty gloomy global scenario. We know we need to keep a reign on spending and check ourselves regularly over the next couple of years, but we have more room to maneuver and capitalize on newfound opportunities than any other jurisdiction in North America.
As well we had the announcement of a change to the Royalty Review that comes into effect in January. The New Democrats spent the day chastising us over changing our position to cater to big oil companies, but that position is simply absurd. The rules have changed in the global marketplace, oil dropped below $50 at one point today, and I am hearing of slowdowns that are directly affecting rural Albertans and their jobs. Of course the NDP wants to glean more money from everybody so they can take care of you, but I know that rural Albertans want to take care of themselves. I also know, as a rural Albertan, that the changes announced are to ensure junior oil companies (not big oil) will continue to explore for plays around the province, and that keeps my neighbours and friends employed, which is much better than the government collecting more money.
So, I have a lot of catching up to do on phone calls and emails since these last two weeks I seem to have simply run from one event or meeting to another, but I will get caught up. Tonight I am heading to Redwater to speak at a meeting with my colleague, Jeff Johnson. Tomorrow morning I am flying with our Infrastructure and Health Ministers to Wainwright for the morning, and in the afternoon I am meeting with some brilliant minds about a video conferencing system they have designed that does not require a lot of bandwidth.
The work never ends, but it is always exciting.
