Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley (right) and Lethbridge-West MLA Shannon Phillips. (Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

'THE PREMIER HAS FAILED AGAIN': NOTLEY

Notley, Phillips blast new COVID measures, advocate for vaccine passports

Sep 7, 2021 | 6:57 AM

Two prominent members of Alberta’s NDP are calling out Premier Jason Kenney and his announcement of new COVID-19 restrictions.

On Friday, Kenney announced the return of a province-wide mask mandate, halting liquor service at restaurants and bars at 10 p.m., and a $100 incentive program for currently-unvaccinated Albertans to get their shots.

Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley and Lethbridge-West MLA Shannon Phillips were originally set to use a press conference at the Galt Museum in Lethbridge Friday to talk about a policy proposal aimed at protecting the Rocky Mountains from coal mining developments, but felt this issue took precedence.

Notley says she was encouraged in the late spring and early summer when COVID-19 cases were dropping and more Albertans were getting immunized, but believes that things have since gone in the opposite direction.

“After all the hard work and sacrifices Albertans have made, it is clear that Jason Kenney’s incompetence and inactions have erased this progress, and now, we will go backwards: backwards to curfews, to restrictions, to masking for everyone, even those of us who have been vaccinated.”

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The two took an especially sharp aim at the vaccine incentivization program.

According to the leader of the official opposition, Albertans who have chosen to not get vaccinated are hearing the message from the premier that they do not have to do their part until they get paid.

“The premier has failed again. He has brought Alberta to a place of imminent danger to our healthcare system. Jason Kenney is choosing to pay the angry mobs who are literally protesting outside of our hospitals, blocking ambulances, while cutting the wages of the nurses who are working inside of them.”

Notley remains optimistic that the reinstatement of a province-wide face mask mandate will help to curb the rise of COVID-19 cases somewhat, but she is concerned that the same is not true for schools.

Phillips says she has heard from many parents, including those in Lethbridge, that they are worried that some school divisions in the province are not requiring staff or students to remain masked.

“I have heard from parents who are anxious – and they’re not the type of parents who normally are anxious – but they don’t know what to believe anymore, who to trust, and certainly, some school communities are doing really really well with, essentially, keeping the exact same situation they had last year,” she said.

“At some other school communities, because it’s not across the board, parents have questions, and just that lack of confidence coming from parents is something that I’ve heard a lot about since the first day of school.”

The NDP is pushing for what Notley calls a “simple, secure, and scannable vaccine passport” that would be mandatory for all non-essential businesses.

Under this proposal, in places like restaurants and entertainment centres, only those who are vaccinated would be able to attend. Grocery stores, hardware stores, and others would require people who are unvaccinated to wear a face mask.

She believes that this would allow people to go about their lives with minimal disruptions while keeping people safe.

While other provinces have instituted vaccine passport systems, there are currently none in Alberta.

A Canada-wide poll from Leger suggests that the majority of Canadians “strongly support” vaccine passports, but a survey from the Alberta Chambers of Commerce shows that two-thirds of business owners and operators are against the idea.