Edmonton – Official Opposition Leader Raj Sherman says that Alison Redford and Ron Liepert are betraying Alberta by giving up on trying to collect $900 million per year in health transfer payments from Ottawa – nearly $2 billion over the next two years.

Sherman says it’s clear the only reason this is happening is because Premier Redford wants to make life easier for her longtime friend, Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

“This is a betrayal of every Albertan who’s had to wait days in the ER or months for a hip or knee replacement,” Sherman says. “It’s a betrayal of every Albertan whose cancer wasn’t diagnosed in time because we don’t have enough MRI machines, of every senior waiting for long-term care. It’s a betrayal of the taxpayers who are seeing health expenses skyrocket under the PCs. That money belongs to Albertans, and Redford and Liepert don’t have the right to just give it away – certainly not to appease their political allies.”

Sherman says that the provincial Tories have scored political points for years by picking fights with the federal government, and that normally he would support a more cooperative tone – but not at the expense of Albertans.

“This is absolutely the wrong time and the wrong issue to start playing nice with the feds,” Sherman says. “That $900 million per year could create hundreds of public long-term care spaces, enough to clear the backlog in acute care, which would in turn dramatically shorten wait times in emergency rooms. It could create more Primary Care Networks, pay for the education of the thousands of new doctors, nurses and other health care professionals Alberta needs to meet our growing population. It could pay for home care to keep seniors together in their homes. And the premier and her finance minister are willing to give up on that for the sake of making Stephen Harper’s life easier?”

Sherman says the Alberta Liberals would never settle for a bad deal for Alberta, no matter which party is in power in Ottawa – especially when, according to the provincial government’s own documents, Albertans contribute more to and receive less from the federal government than citizens of other provinces.

“Why won’t the premier fight for Albertans and shake down Ottawa for the money it owes us?” Sherman asks. “Of all the promises this rookie premier has broken, this is the worst of all because it attacks the very health of every citizen. Albertans deserve better.”

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