Mr. MacDonald: Thank you. The president of the PC Party reported last week that the party pays its leader an income above and beyond expenses.

My first question is to the Premier. What is the leader’s benefit plan trust, and how much will it top up the Premier’s current total compensation package from Alberta taxpayers?

Ms Redford: Mr. Speaker, I’ve already answered this question. I have repeatedly said in this House – last week, this week, and press availability yesterday – that I am receiving no such payments.

Mr. MacDonald: Again to the Premier, Mr. Speaker: when will the Premier promise to taxpayers to release all the details on this leader’s benefit plan trust that is being negotiated for her from the party and all of the details as well on the leader’s benefit plan trust that was paid to the former Premier for the last four years?

Ms Redford: Mr. Speaker, whatever situation may have existed before, I have no information on it. I’m not going to be providing any information because I have no information with respect to that. As I’ve said over and over publicly, inside this House and outside this House, I do believe that there are expenses related to being leader of the party that are appropriate for the party to pay through party donations and not through taxpayers’ dollars, and if that happens, then I will fully disclose that. It has not yet happened.

Mr. MacDonald: Again, Mr. Speaker, we’re not talking about the expenses that are valid. What we’re talking about, and this is my question again to the Premier: why does the Premier feel it is necessary to hide the details of the leader’s benefit plan trust from the taxpayers, who are already paying the Premier over . . .

The Speaker: Okay. There could have been interjections, but the Premier chose to respond to those first two questions. But when you start talking about “hiding,” I think we’re going overboard here.

Premier, if you want to supplement an answer or add an answer, go ahead. If not, we’ll move on.

Ms Redford: Mr. Speaker, I will say exactly what I said last week, yesterday in the House, and outside the House. There is no information for me to be disclosing because there is no information that I have.

Alberta Hansard, December 6, 2011

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