Two former members of Alberta's governing United Conservative Party are resuscitating the province's once-dominant Progressive Conservative Party. Former infrastructure minister Peter Guthrie and legislature member Scott Sinclair were booted from caucus earlier this year for pushing back against the Premier Danielle Smith's government and now sit as Independents. Sinclair says the province's two-party system has become too divisive, and they want to galvanize support from Albertans who feel they don't have a political home. Former NDP premier Rachel Notley ended the PC's 44-year

Prime Minister Mark Carney has called a byelection for the riding of Battle River — Crowfoot in Alberta for Aug. 18. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is expected to run in the riding after losing his Ottawa-area seat in the April to Liberal Bruce Fanjoy. Former Conservative MP Damien Kurek resigned the seat earlier this month to clear the way for Poilievre to run after winning the seat with 82 per cent of the vote.

An Alberta judge has put on hold a provincial law that bans doctors from providing gender-affirming care to youth. Justice Allison Kuntz, in a written judgment, has issued a temporary injunction against the law, saying it raises serious issues that need to be hashed out in court. Kuntz says a temporary stop to the law is needed to prevent what she calls ``irreparable harm'' coming to young patients while the issue is debated. The law, passed late last year but not fully in effect, would have prevented doctors from providing treatment such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy to th

Two people, including a nine-year-old girl, are dead following an early morning house fire east of the Calgary airport. The second victim, a man in his 50s, was found deceased inside the home, while the girl was sent to hospital but did not survive. Fire spokeswoman Carole Henke says emergency crews called to the Taradale neighbourhood were met by roaring flames bursting from a two-storey home, threatening other nearby structures. Six people were inside the house: an adult and a teen who escaped through an upper floor window were sent to hospital while two people in the basement suit

Alberta's finance minister is set to deliver the final bottom line number today on last year's provincial budget. Nate Horner's new figure will close the books on the budget for the fiscal year that ended in March. That budget was last forecast to come in with a nearly $6-billion surplus. Alberta's new budget year is now a few months old, but its expected bottom line number is deep in the red. This budget, introduced by Horner in February, predicts Alberta will register a $5.2-billion deficit at the end of March 2026. It also predicts deficits will continue for years after that

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says the public desire in her province to quit Canada has never been higher. Smith says a recent byelection that saw a separatist candidate garner almost 18 per cent of the vote shows Albertans are deeply frustrated and angry with Ottawa. Smith says she takes that frustration seriously and hopes Prime Minister Mark Carney does as well. The premier says quelling separatist desire is in Carney's hands and could be done if he scraps laws that she has said stifle energy production in Alberta. Smith made the comments today at an unrelated news conference in Calgary al

Calgary police say charges have been laid after an 11-year-old boy was hit earlier this year by a light-rail train car. Officers say the boy was walking in a marked crosswalk at Banff Trail Station in mid-April when the CTrain entered the station. The pedestrian barriers weren't down, and the train struck the boy, who was treated in hospital for life-threatening injuries. They also said the driver of the train was arrested. Police say the 60-year-old train operator has since been charged with dangerous operation causing bodily harm. They say he is scheduled to appear in court in

Premier Danielle Smith says she'll be spending the summer touring the province with business leaders, backbenchers and an academic to find ways to protect Alberta from what she calls federal mistreatment and overreach. She says Ottawa is to blame for decades of lost investment and resource revenue and that Alberta can't be held back any longer. The premier is to lead the Alberta Next panel, which also includes three United Conservative Party legislature members, Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz, a retired judge and a physician. Smith says following a summer of town halls across

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is set to announce today next steps in her plan to challenge what she and her government have called unfair intrusions from the federal government. Smith will be in Calgary to announce details of the Alberta Next Panel. She will be joined by Adam Legge of the Business Council of Alberta at a news conference in Heritage Park. The premier has previously said she will chair the panel, which will tour the province to hear concerns and suggestions from Albertans about the province's relationship with Prime Minister Mark Carney's government. The panel