A PREMIER’S REFLECTIONS // COVER
A PREMIER’S REFLECTIONS REFLECTIONS JASON KENNEY LOOKS BACK ON THE PAST TWO YEARS AND TOWARDS THE FUTURE BY MELANIE DARBYSHIRE
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hen Alberta went into lockdown in March of 2020, shortly after the World Health Organization declared the spread of COVID-19 a global pandemic, the future was more uncertain than ever before for most Albertans. Nobody knew what would happen, for how long, or what the fallout – short or long term – would be. We were walking blind and frightened, the looming prospect of an overwhelmed healthcare system threatening catastrophe, with many more questions than answers. All citizens were affected by that first and subsequent lockdown and decisions: young and old, single people and families, healthy and sick, employed and unemployed, essential workers and the work-from-home crowd. While some suffered more than others, to be sure, nobody was spared from the harsh realities that lockdown and the ensuing pandemic response would pose. To be Premier during this difficult time, responsible for making those decisions, was exceptionally challenging. Two years later, with the benefit of hindsight, Premier Jason Kenney sat down with us to reflect on the COVID-19 pandemic, his government’s response, the consequences of that response, and how Alberta can move forward, stronger, united and more resilient than ever.
How would he describe the last two years? “It has been a roller coaster for everybody,” he says after pausing to find the right words. “A time of dislocation, uncertainty, hope and despair. For those of us in government, having to make these decisions has been impossibly difficult. There’s no textbook for how to do this, no place in the world has done it perfectly. There’s only bad choices and sometimes only catastrophically bad choices, so it’s been tough.” The most difficult choices always involved imposing restrictions. “We knew that they were going to impact people’s lives, sometimes in profound ways,” he reflects. “Every time we faced a wave that was putting huge pressure on the hospitals and we had to look at some of these restrictions, there were more than a few tears shed around the COVID cabinet committee table, as people thought through the consequences of the decisions we were making.” Not every decision caused torment though, and there are some Kenney is in fact very proud of. One is the launch of Alberta’s Recovery Plan in June 2020. This was especially important given the economic downturn the province had experienced for the roughly five years leading up to the
RIGHT: JASON KENNEY PHOTO SOURCE: UNITED CONSERVATIVE PARTY
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APRIL 2022 // BUSINESS IN CALGARY // BUSINESSINCALGARY.COM
