From extremely dry conditions in Alberta to very wet conditions in Manitoba, and Saskatchewan getting everything in between, this years’ seeding progress is equally varied. Starting in Alberta, as of the last provincial crop report for the week ending May 24, 73 per cent of crops were in the ground, which is slightly behind the five-year… Read More

The Alberta government has introduced its new police funding model that will increase the amount of RCMP officer and civilian positions. The Provincial Police Service Agreement (PPSA) will be a cost-sharing initiative between both the federal and provincial governments along with the addition of small and rural communities beginning to pay a portion of the… Read More

Citing the government’s commitment to Canadian farmers and farm families, Minister of International Trade Diversification, Jim Carr, is headed to South Korea and Japan. The trade mission will also include Jeremy Harrison, trade and export development minister for Saskatchewan, along with Tanya Fir, trade and tourism minister for Alberta. “This trade mission to Japan and… Read More

Premier Jason Kenney is going through with his plan to eliminate the carbon tax. On May 22, the Government of Alberta introduced Bill 1, An Act to Repeal the Carbon Tax, and if passed, the repeal will come into force at 12:01 a.m. on May 30, 2019. “Promise made, promise kept,” the premier said in… Read More

It appears the Government of Alberta has listened to Team Alberta’s concerns over the timing of the Mandatory Entry Level Training (MELT) for new Class 1 drivers announced last month. Transportation Minister Brian Mason has announced agricultural workers may apply for a one-year exemption from the training, recognizing the quick turn-around to implement MELT would be incredibly tight… Read More

Last week, the Alberta government introduced Bill 17, the Fair and Family-Friendly Workplaces Act, which updates Alberta’s Labour Code and Employment Standards Code. Since the bill covers all workers in Alberta, it requires some further digging to parse out what applies to agriculture and farms. On Friday, Shaun Haney spoke with Oneil Carlier, Minister of… Read More