| In a province where one political party has dominated for 30 years, a new survey reveals only 40 per cent of Albertans feel the province has a healthy democracy.
"There’s a level of dissatisfaction bubbling under the surface," says Trevor Harrison, a co-author of the study for the University of Alberta’s Parkland Institute.
Harrison, an associate professor at the University of Lethbridge, co-wrote Trouble in Paradise: Citizens’ View on Democracy in Alberta with University of Alberta sociology professors William Johnston and Harvey Krahn.
The report relied on survey responses from 1,200 Albertans. Respondents were asked a variety of questions to gauge their opinions on the current state of Alberta politics.
Only 40 per cent of Albertans surveyed agreed the province’s democracy was healthy or very healthy.
Even amongst respondents who labeled themselves as supporters of the Conservative government – which has won every provincial election since 1971 and shows few signs of losing its power – only 57 per cent rated the state of Alberta democracy as healthy or very healthy.
Half of survey respondents felt that the Alberta government hides a lot of information from the people of the province and 46 per cent felt that the provincial government has removed too much power from local municipal authorities.
Harrison says the results were surprising.
"Alberta is more economically buoyant than many areas in North America," he says. "Usually when economic times are good people tend to be more satisfied politically."
The report also found that 79 per cent of Albertans feel that big business has too much influence on the government and 67 per cent think the same of the media.
Only 40 per cent of Albertans felt that native groups, labour unions, ethnic minorities, women’s groups and environmental organizations had too much undue influence on the government.
Four out of every five people surveyed felt that there should be limits on election spending, an issue the current government has never looked at, says Harrison.
A spokesperson for the Alberta government could not be reached to comment on the report before press time.
The report authors identified a number of reasons why Albertans might be dissatisfied with the current political system in the province – including a lack of free votes in the provincial legislature, infrequent legislative sittings, "ramming through" of legislation by the government and the dismissal of elected health and education boards .
Harrison says what’s happening in Alberta may also be part of a worldwide trend towards dissatisfaction with the political process.
"Throughout the whole world there’s been a gradual, growing discontent. The number of people voting is declining and there’s a high level of cynicism, so in that case, Alberta isn’t that different," he says.
Harrison says the report indicates a need for more serious public discussion about the state of democracy in the province.
"It’s clear the government is not in any particular danger, but there do seem to be some undercurrents of discontent," he says. "I consider this report as an invitation for discussion about how we can improve democratic practices in Alberta." |
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