Close X
    Saturday, November 23, 2024
    ADVT 
    National

    Damage Control Needed On Alberta Opposition Leader Jason Kenney's India Trip: Trade Minister

    Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 19 Sep, 2018 12:28 PM
      EDMONTON — The Alberta government says it will be doing "damage control" after Opposition leader Jason Kenney's visit to India.
       
       
      Trade Minister Deron Bilous says there appears to be confusion in India over who Kenney is speaking for and questions over what he is saying as he meets this week with business and political leaders.
       
       
      "There's already been confusion," Bilous said Tuesday, citing a social media post from an Indian government cabinet minister who referred to Kenney as a minister of the Crown. "We don't know exactly what he is saying, how he is portraying himself."
       
       
      Bilous said Kenney doesn't speak on behalf of the government of Alberta or the government of Canada.
       
       
      "What we don't know is if he is clarifying where there are misunderstandings ... but we're not about to let this visit of Mr. Kenney's potentially damage the government of Alberta's relationship with India."
       
       
      Bilous said they will do follow-up work to deal with any confusion.
       
       
      "We've directed our Alberta trade office to do damage control, correcting the record wherever we can," he said.
       
       
      "They'll be doing follow-up conversations with all of the Indian officials that Mr. Kenney meets with."
       
       
      Kenney and two caucus members are using their own money and United Conservative Party funds for the trip to promote Alberta's oil industry and express concerns about Indian tariffs on peas and lentils.
       
       
      Nitin Gadkari, the minister responsible for roads and other resources, tweeted out this week, "Met Mr. Jason Kenney, Hon'ble Minister, Alberta, Canada. We discussed about exploring areas of mutual co-operation in infrastructure sector."
       
      Kenney has also given multiple interviews with media in that country making statements that appear to conflict with ones made earlier in Alberta.
       
       
      Speaking to CNN-News18, he urged Indians to invest, saying, "Canada, amongst the developed countries — Alberta in particular — have low taxes. We have one of the best educated workforces, efficient power prices. We have a lot of strategic advantages for that kind of investment."
       
       
      Kenney's UCP has, in fact, been sharply critical of Premier Rachel Notley's power pricing system and its tax regime.
       
       
      Two months ago, Kenney said the current Alberta tax program was not luring investment but in fact undermining it, and that if his party forms government, he will axe the existing carbon tax and then look at further tax reductions.
       
       
      "I want to cut other taxes to help bring back investment and get people working again," Kenney said in a PostMedia interview published July 12.
       
       
      Bilous said he hopes Albertans are scratching their heads.
       
       
      "Mr. Kenney is saying one thing to Albertans and another to an international audience," he said.
       
       
      "This is where it is critical that our Alberta office in India will be following up with all the officials that Mr. Kenney meets with."
       
       
      UCP spokeswoman Christine Myatt said Kenney connected with Bilous prior to the trip and is working to build a positive "Team Alberta" approach.
       
       
      "It is disappointing to hear the minister suggest that Mr. Kenney’s visit to India has or will in any way hurt Alberta," Myatt said in a statement.
       
       
      "Mr. Kenney is more than happy to forward Alberta and Canada's interests while in India, utilizing his high-level international connections.
       
       
      "It's quite clear that this latest NDP smear job is a desperate attempt to distract from its disastrous record.”
       
       
      Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier has led two trade missions to India over the last two years on behalf of the province.
      Prev Next

      MORE National ARTICLES

      Double Murder Suspect Hospitalized Before Calgary Court Appearance

      Double Murder Suspect Hospitalized Before Calgary Court Appearance
      CALGARY — A man accused of killing a Calgary woman and her five-year-old daughter was sent to hospital prior to a court appearance this morning.

      Double Murder Suspect Hospitalized Before Calgary Court Appearance

      Homicide Detectives Say Death Near Boston Bar, B.C. Was Not Random

      Homicide Detectives Say Death Near Boston Bar, B.C. Was Not Random
      One person has been arrested and homicide detectives are investigating after a body was found in British Columbia's Fraser Canyon region.

      Homicide Detectives Say Death Near Boston Bar, B.C. Was Not Random

      Rohan Bopanna And Divij Sharan Pair Lands Men’s Tennis Doubles Gold At Asian Games

      Rohan Bopanna And Divij Sharan Pair Lands Men’s Tennis Doubles Gold At Asian Games
      Top seeds Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan notched up their maiden men’s doubles gold medal at the Asian Games, dominating the final clash with a thoroughly clinical performance here on Friday.

      Rohan Bopanna And Divij Sharan Pair Lands Men’s Tennis Doubles Gold At Asian Games

      B.C. Mountie Charged With Sex Offence Involving A Minor, Breach Of Trust

      B.C. Mountie Charged With Sex Offence Involving A Minor, Breach Of Trust
      The BC Prosecution Service says criminal charges were sworn against Ridge Meadows RCMP Const. Gregory Scott Bakker on Wednesday.

      B.C. Mountie Charged With Sex Offence Involving A Minor, Breach Of Trust

      Second-Degree Murder Charge Laid In Vancouver's 7Th Homicide This Year

      Second-Degree Murder Charge Laid In Vancouver's 7Th Homicide This Year
      Vancouver police say an arrest has been made in the city's seventh homicide of 2018.

      Second-Degree Murder Charge Laid In Vancouver's 7Th Homicide This Year

      Know How To Save Life Of Someone Who Could Overdose On Opioids: B.C. Doctor Aamir Bharmal

      Know How To Save Life Of Someone Who Could Overdose On Opioids: B.C. Doctor Aamir Bharmal
      VANCOUVER — British Columbia's largest health authority is urging people to ensure they know how to use medication that could reverse a fatal overdose.

      Know How To Save Life Of Someone Who Could Overdose On Opioids: B.C. Doctor Aamir Bharmal

      PrevNext