I'm not shy about stating my opinion on political issues, so I can state my opinion, which is, on this one, Premier Notley's right. Because cap and trade systems have not been shown to work. And if you want to price carbon, then I would listen to the CEO of Suncor, who suggests a clean, transparent carbon tax makes a bunch more sense than a cap and trade system that just creates jobs for traders. I - I kind of agree with that.
Naheed NenshiBut of course in my world nothing is political. And everything's about policy and governance. And maybe a bit of politics.
Naheed NenshiYou know, even in the economic downturn in Alberta, there are restaurants in Calgary, and even in Canmore up the mountain, that cannot open for lunch because they cannot find staff. And they cannot find staff because there's nowhere for those people to live. And so safe and decent housing, market housing, subsidized housing, the whole bit, we really, really need to have our heads on straight on this, and we don't yet.
Naheed NenshiI'll tell you that the dog whistle politics is badly missing the mark. Because, you know, as I've been speaking about it, sure, I've got some racists who come and complain about it. That happens. Right? But I have been absolutely overwhelmed - absolutely overwhelmed - by the number of everyday people who have contacted me with one simple question: what can I do to help?
Naheed NenshiI think it's a good thing that we can have relatively non-partisan political conversations because I don't think that my premier necessarily should agree with everything the federal NDP says. I don't think she should disagree with everything the federal Conservatives say. I think that Albertans and Canadians as a whole, as I always say, are looking for pragmatic politicians with pragmatic solutions to their problems, and they want the best ideas to move forward, regardless of who has that idea.
Naheed Nenshi