DIDSBURY - Newly re-elected Ponoka-Didsbury Conservative MP Blaine Calkins says he hopes the 45th session of Parliament now underway will see positive movement on key issues, including addressing Alberta concerns.
King Charles III opened the 45th Parliament of Canada and delivered the speech from the throne Tuesday morning.
His May 26-27 visit is officially being billed as his first to Canada since his coronation and "a momentous and historic occasion that underscores Canada’s identity and sovereignty as a constitutional monarchy."
The speech from the throne opens every new session of Parliament but has rarely been given by a reigning monarch.
It was expected to introduce Prime Minister Mark Carney's Liberal government’s direction and goals and outline how it will work to achieve them, having been elected a minority government in the April 28 election.
Calkins was elected in the new Ponoka-Didsbury riding. He was first elected to Parliament in 2006, and re-elected in 2008, 2011, 2015, 2019, 2021, and now in 2025.
The Ponoka-Didsbury riding includes Innisfail, Olds, Didsbury, Bowden and portions of Mountain View and Red Deer counties along with other municipalities.
In Albertan interview on Sunday, Calkins said, “We’ve got some important business to do.”
The fact the Carney government does not plan to introduce a budget during the new session is a concern, he said.
“It’s unfathomable that no budget is coming,” he said. “Waiting until the fall I think is very much a problem for Mark Carney and the Liberal government. It is very concerning.”
The opposition Conservatives will be pushing for several pieces of current legislation to be rescinded, including those Calkins says unfairly restrict oil and gas development, including Bill 69, known by critics as the No-Pipeline Bill, he said.
“We need to see them gone,” he said, noting dealing with U.S. tariff policies will also be top on the agenda.
Meanwhile, Calkins says he is pleased to be re-appointed to the Conservative shadow cabinet as the party’s shadow minister for hunting, fishing and conservation.
The federal government’s role in hunting, fishing, and conservation includes protecting wildlife and ensuring compliance with federal regulations, such as the Fisheries Act.
Hunting and fishing are big business in Alberta and elsewhere in Canada, generating at least $20 billion a year in economic activity, he said.
“This is an important (shadow cabinet) role,” he said.
Hunting and fishing and related activities are important for the Ponoka-Didsbury riding district economy, he said.
- With files from MVP staff
