Guest Opinion: Words to the wise for Premier Kenney

Below are specific suggestions that should make things better.

First, fire yourself as intergovernmental affairs minister and appoint a new one. Our current “fight everyone” style is not working. Ideally, we would use a “good cop, bad cop” approach, and this minister could be the good cop to assist you in negotiations. Unfortunately, we are currently without a good cop and we are missing out on co-operation from other governments.

Second, you need to revisit whom you have chosen to employ as press secretaries and political staff. Campaign rhetoric is for campaigns, governing requires a different approach. Ministers and their offices need to always remember that they serve ALL Albertans, not just the ones who voted UCP.

Albertans want the premier’s and ministers’ offices to be staffed by grown ups who can be trusted to maturely address the issues facing Albertans. You would be well-served if your ministers employed more policy advisors and fewer Twitter warriors. Your ministers should employ more Albertans with meaningful Alberta-wide networks and fewer people who moved to Alberta for the first time to work for a minister.

Political advisors are most useful when they have skin in the game. If they haven’t lived in Alberta for a while; if they haven’t committed to making Alberta their permanent home, they might not be suited for the job. Albertans would be surprised by how many of this government’s top staff and bureaucrats aren’t from Alberta.