CALGARY- Stop the cuts: that’s the message hundreds chanted outside Premier Alison Redford’s constituency office in southwest Calgary on Friday.
Nearly 300 people gathered to protest government spending cuts on programs that support people with development disabilities.
Back in March the government announced it was slashing $42 million from the budget for community access programming for Albertans with developmental disabilities.
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Many at the rally feel the cuts will have far reaching effects, not only on those people and their families who directly rely on the programs, but also on jobs, the health care system and even the justice system.
The premier says she understands why people are upset.
“We’re going to make sure that PDD is effectively supporting the clients of PDD, the families of PDD, and that the money is going directly to clients,” Premier Redford said. “We know that this is going on. I certainly understand how people feel. I am glad that people are expressing their concerns and raising their voices, because it’s important for people to have that dialogue.”
The rally was a peaceful one, though there were police officers standing by, following Wednesday’s rally in Edmonton where the Minister for Persons with Disabilities, Frank Oberle, was threatened.
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