It’s easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of external forces—the looming U.S. tariffs, another 20% carbon tax hike on April 1st, and years of short-sighted policy decisions that have left Alberta more vulnerable than we should be. But dwelling on what we can’t change doesn’t move us forward. Instead, we should focus on what we can control—our businesses, our industries, and the policies we influence at home.
Shane Getson was elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland on April 16, 2019, and has served on several legislative committees, sub committees, and international organizations representing the Alberta Government. In addition, he has led two significant Task forces: one on Economic Corridors, and the other on Career Education. He was named parliamentary Secretary of Economic Corridors in October 2022.
Crime and disorder are taking a toll on many local businesses. According to a recent Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) report, the share of Alberta small businesses directly affected by crime and safety issues almost doubled between 2023 and 2024, jumping from 24 to 54 per cent.
This time of the year I usually like to speculate on what may lie ahead for Alberta in 2025. However, Canada turned out to be ‘the neighbour who isn’t paying our share’ and everything got sidetracked by talk about the implementation of USA tariffs as high as 25 per cent on Canadian goods.
As Alberta businesses grapple with the dual pressures of evolving global trade policies and persistent interprovincial trade barriers, a balanced approach is essential to navigating this challenging terrain. With the incoming U.S. President placing tariffs back in the spotlight, and Canada still contending with barriers within its own borders, the time is ripe to explore the opportunities that lie within
these challenges.
At the end of each year, I try to encapsulate what I consider the three components of the past year into what was ‘good, bad and ugly’ for Canadians that year. This year I am having difficulty finding what was ‘good’ but have many ‘bad’ and ‘ugly’ categories. I find very little change in people’s actions regardless of a rapid falling of ‘feeling good things are on the near horizon for Canada’.
Honourable Pete Guthrie, ECA Biography
Minister of Infrastructure
The Honourable Pete Guthrie was re-elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Airdrie-Cochrane on May 29, 2023. On June 9, 2023, Mr. Guthrie was sworn in as Minister of Infrastructure. He previously served as Minister of Energy.
Cathie is an innovative award-winning professional in the glass industry. As an active co-founder, she has been a key member of the Goldray family since 1985. During this time, Cathie has managed all facets of the glass manufacturing business at Goldray – from research and development to finance, operations, marketing, and communications.
We will be closely reviewing the Competition Bureau’s Draft Guidelines in the coming weeks, and will be following the public consultation process more generally. However, our preliminary view is that the Draft Guidelines, if and when adopted, will do nothing to meaningfully clarify or limit the scope of the new provisions, and therefore will not in any way mitigate the significant restrictions on free expression imposed by the new provisions.
Demetrios Nicolaides was sworn in as Minister of Education on June 9, 2023. He previously served as the Minister of Advanced Education
