Building a strong province

By Chantelle de Jonge Chestermere-Strathmore MLA

Alberta’s government is focused on protecting Alberta jobs, helping students develop strong skills, and building more affordable homes across the province. This week, our government launched a new portal for businesses to tell us directly how tariffs will impact them, expanded reading and math supports for students, and secured a major partnership that will help build nearly 1,500 affordable homes in Alberta.

Tariffs and counter-tariffs can raise costs, disrupt supply chains, and put Alberta jobs and investment at risk. That is why our government launched an online portal where Alberta businesses can tell us directly how U.S. tariffs and Canadian counter-tariffs are affecting their day-to-day operations. With more than $152 billion in Alberta goods exported to the United States in 2025, even small changes in tariffs can have consequences for our province’s businesses, jobs, and investments. 

Hearing directly from affected businesses will help our government understand where those pressures are being felt and respond accordingly. Our government will continue advocating for free and fair trade while ensuring our response reflects the realities facing Alberta businesses. Feedback can be provided at alberta.ca/tariff-related-resources-for-alberta-businesses.

Alberta students continue to rank among the best in Canada and the world, and our government is making sure they can succeed. The latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results show that Alberta students continue to perform among the best in Canada. Alberta ranked first among provinces in science and reading, and second in mathematics. At the same time, our government is expanding reading and math screenings to Grades 4 and 5 so teachers can identify students who are struggling and provide help earlier. We are investing $20 million this school year, an increase of more than 60 per cent over last year, to identify students who need additional support in reading and math and help them succeed. Early results show that between 30 and 41 per cent of students who were previously identified as needing additional support were no longer identified that way when reassessed a year later. Parents will also receive their child’s results, giving families a clearer picture of where their child is doing well and where extra help may be needed.

More Albertans will have access to an affordable place to call home. Our government has partnered with Build Canada Homes to invest more than $385 million in 21 affordable housing projects across Alberta, creating at least 1,460 new homes. Alberta’s government has already committed more than $165 million in provincial funding toward these projects, while Build Canada Homes will provide up to $220 million in additional grants and loans. Alberta-recommended projects will receive priority for federal funding, keeping local needs at the centre of these decisions. We are also working with Build Canada Homes to develop a coordinated application process so housing providers can spend less time navigating separate provincial and federal funding programs and more time building homes. Since 2021, our government has committed more than $730 million through the Affordable Housing Partnership Program as we work toward supporting 25,000 more affordable households by 2031.

Our government is listening to Alberta businesses, strengthening the foundations of student learning, and bringing more investment into our province to build the homes Albertans need. These investments will help strengthen our communities, support economic growth, and continue to drive Alberta’s future forward.

As always, please free to reach out to my office with your feedback and questions (Chestermere.Strathmore@assembly.ab.ca).

(Chantelle de Jonge is the MLA for Chestermere-Strathmore and the Parliamentary Secretary for Affordability and Utilities)