In this week's episode of The Line Alberta podcast, Rob Breakenridge sits down for a conversation with Airdrie-Cochrane MLA Peter Guthrie, who just recently became leader of the Alberta Party.

Guthrie, of course, started the year as a member of Danielle Smith's cabinet, before stepping down over his concerns about how the government was handling the controversy around health care contracts and procurement. His calls for a public inquiry into the matter led to his expulsion from the UCP caucus.

Since then, Guthrie has become a sharp critic of the Smith government and has been organizing to present Albertans with a more moderate - and federalist - conservative option. Efforts to revive the Alberta PC Party have been met with lawsuit threats from the UCP and ultimately legislative roadblocks in the form of Bill 14.

In this episode, we discuss Guthrie's own political journey and what future holds for the Alberta Party and its possible rebranding. We'll also discuss the referendum question whether the UCP has been co-opted by the separatist movement, and what it all means for the possibility of an early election in 2026.

In this week’s episode of The Line: Alberta Podcast, Rob Breakenridge speaks with Stephen Buffalo, who is president and CEO of the Indian Resource Council, board chair of the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation, and a member of the Samson Cree Nation.

The Assembly of First Nations has voted to call on the federal government to withdrawal the Alberta-Ottawa memorandum of understanding (MOU) on a new pipeline deal and to express support for the First Nations on the BC coast who have spoken out against the proposal.

Stephen Buffalo, though, maintains that the AFN resolution was pushed through without meaningful debate and that the process excluded the Indigenous voices that support energy development and see the benefit in partnerships and ownership stakes in such projects. The Indian Resource Council, for example, represents more than 150 First Nations.

We'll get Buffalo's perspective on how the conversation about First Nations and energy developments needs more balance and how much progress has been made with government and industry on moving projects forward with Indigenous involvement and partnership. He believes that there is tremendous opportunity for communities to generate wealth and employment opportunities and that these First Nations can also help be guardians when it comes to ensuring environmental protections.

Certainly the issue of Indigenous consultation and participation will be front and centre as this MOU and the pipeline project move forward. We'll find out what a successful path forward might look like.

Two big topics in this week’s episode of The Line: Alberta podcast, as Rob Breakenridge breaks down the hugely significant Alberta-Ottawa memorandum of understanding (MOU) on energy as well as Alberta’s proposed health reforms that will open the door for physicians to practice in both the public and private systems in the hopes of bringing down wait times.

We begin the episode with a conversation with Robert (RJ) Johnston, director of energy and natural resources at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy. We’ll get his thoughts on the significance of the Alberta-Ottawa MOU and the potential impact of the policy concessions made by both sides. We’ll also look at what still needs to happen to make a new west coast pipeline a reality, including the question of who, exactly, will build and own this project.

We’ll also be joined in this episode by Dr. Brian Day, founder of the Cambie Surgical Centre, an award-winning surgeon, a former president of the Canadian Medical Association, and author of the new book “My Fight for Canadian Healthcare: A Thirty-Year Battle to Put Patients First.” We’ll get his reaction and analysis of Alberta’s proposed healthcare changes, and whether he believes this represents the sort of health reform that our system needs.

In this week’s episode of The Line: Alberta Podcast, Rob Breakenridge takes a closer look at one of the more fascinating stories emerging from the recent municipal elections: the political evolution and successful comeback of Jeromy Farkas

In this conversation with Calgary's new mayor, we reflect on his political journey from firebrand city councillor, to unsuccessful mayoral candidate, to the political wilderness, to the comeback trail. Farkas 2.0 eked out a narrow win in the recent election - an election that also saw the defeat of the incumbent who bested Farkas four years ago, and featured - for the first time - municipal political parties in Alberta's two largest cities.

We also discuss the many challenges facing the new mayor and the rest of the new city council and the commitments to making Calgary a safe and affordable city, while also meeting the housing needs of a rapidly expanding metropolis. The mayor also speaks to some of the more immediate controversies and debates that have flared up at city hall in the short period since the election.

In this week’s episode of The Line: Alberta Podcast, Rob Breakenridge takes a closer look at the debate over direct democracy and how opponents of the government have taken advantage of the UCP’s own voter recall and citizen initiative laws.

In the aftermath of the teachers’ strike and the government’s use of the notwithstanding clause, a number of UCP MLAs are now being targeted with voter recall campaigns. The Alberta Federation of Labour has also announced its intention to try and force referendums on a number of issues, including the use of the notwithstanding clause.

All of that is in addition to the two previously approved referendum petitions: the Forever Canadian anti-separatist campaign (now going through the verification process) and a campaign to force a vote on private school funding (currently in the signature-collecting phase). The government recently denied a request from the chief electoral officer for an additional $13-million to ensure that Elections Alberta has the resources to manage and administer all of these petitions and potential referendums and recall votes.

Our guest this week is Dr. Jared Wesley, professor of political science at the University of Alberta and co-author of the new book “No I in Team: Party Loyalty in Canadian Politics.” We’ll get his take on whether this tumult was predictable when the UCP brought these laws in, and what this all might be leading to in 2026.

In this episode of The Line Alberta podcast, Rob Breakenridge sits down for an in-person conversation with former Alberta Premier Jason Kenney.

As Alberta faces a possible independence referendum next year, Jason Kenney is becoming increasingly vocal about the need to take on the separatists and to make the case for a united Canada. We'll hear more from Mr. Kenney about why he's been more visible and more vocal these days, why he feels compelled to make the conservative case for a united Canada, and what's at stake for Alberta in a possible referendum campaign.

He's also got plenty to say about the need for Ottawa to listen to and address Alberta's concerns and how the federal government - and other provincial governments - can help strengthen the case for national unity. We'll also hear his thoughts on what the separation debate in Alberta tells us about the struggle to control and define the conservative movement.

In this week’s episode of The Line: Alberta Podcast, Rob Breakenridge takes a closer look at the debate around the notwithstanding clause and Alberta’s decision to invoke Section 33 of the Charter as part of their back-to-work legislation to end the teachers’ strike.

First of all, we’ll hear a defence of the notwithstanding clause and Alberta’s decision to apply it in this situation. We’ll hear from Geoffrey Sigalet, director of the UBC Research Group for Constitutional Law, an assistant professor of political science at UBC Okanagan, and senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute. He argues that Alberta is on solid legal and constitutional ground with its BIll 2.

On the other side, however, the Alberta Federation of Labour is quite outraged over BIll 2, and the use of the notwithstanding clause specifically. They’re describing it as an attack on organized labour and labour rights in the province. The AFL has even raised the spectre of a general strike in response to the government’s actions. We’ll hear from AFL president Gil McGowan.

In this week’s episode of The Line: Alberta Podcast, Rob Breakenridge takes a closer look at the Alberta government’s decision to introduce back-to-work legislation.

Alberta teachers went on strike over three weeks ago and after virtually no progress was made at the bargaining table, the Alberta government has taken the opportunity with the fall sitting of the Legislature underway to use the metaphorical hammer to end the strike. Bill 2, the Back to School Act, was tabled in the Legislature Monday afternoon. The expectation is that classes will resume on Wednesday (Oct. 29).

In bringing an end to the strike, the government is taking two very controversial steps: they’ll be invoking the notwithstanding clause to shield the back-to-work legislation from a Charter challenge and they’ll also be imposing a four-year contract on teachers - the terms of which are very similar to those contained in the offer that was widely rejected by teachers in late September. Suffice to say, this will not go over well.

In this episode, Rob speaks with Peter MacKay, an Alberta teacher who was previously lead negotiator for the Alberta Teachers Association. We’ll get his thoughts on how things got to this point, what led to the strike in the first place, and the pressures teachers are dealing with amid all of these unresolved issues.