Congratulations, Speaker McIver & new Minister Schow!

Ric McIver became the 15th Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta on May 13, one day after resigning as Minister of Municipal Affairs.

The prestigious Speaker position became vacant on May 8, when then-Speaker Nathan Cooper resigned so he could accept a new role as Alberta's senior representative to the U.S.A. Cooper will continue serving in the Legislature as a backbench MLA until he starts his new job in June.

The Alberta Municipalities (ABmunis) Board of Directors congratulated Speaker McIver on his election, acknowledged his long and dedicated service to Albertans, and wished him continued success in his new role.

While our association did not always see eye-to-eye with then-Minister McIver, we appreciated his willingness to listen and consider the needs of the 264 member communities for which we advocate. Whenever ABmunis was invited by Municipal Affairs to collaborate or contribute to the provincial government’s development of legislation and regulations, we knew our collective voice would be heard. 

Tourism Minister Joseph Schow was named interim Minister of Municipal Affairs on May 13. He is expected to serve in this role until a new provincial cabinet is named. 

We encourage Minister Schow to draw on ABmunis' expertise, knowledge and enthusiasm to help shape provincial legislation and regulations pertaining to Alberta’s municipalities and community-builders in the coming weeks and months. We are eager to maintain the good relations we established with his predecessor over the last two years. Together, we can help build more resilient, thriving communities.