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The demonstration was largely peaceful, however, a Rebel Media personality posted a video of one protester appearing to push another Rebel personality, who is female, with a sign.

The video prompted outrage online and Kenney spoke about it during his media availability, asking the Opposition NDP and union leaders to be careful not to encourage similar behaviour.

“I would ask Ms. (Rachel) Notley and the government union leaders to be careful about their language. Inciting people to violence undermines their own cause and it doesn’t respect the kind of civility Albertans expect,” Kenney said Sunday.

Calgary police, who were on scene during the protests, said they were not made aware of the altercation and no formal report was filed.

A later statement provided by Kenney’s spokeswoman, Christine Myatt, said the UCP is taking the protesters’ concerns seriously.

“We, of course, listen to all Albertans and an election is the greatest consultation possible. Albertans overwhelmingly voted for a party that campaigned on addressing Alberta’s out-of-control spending,” said Myatt, who added that they hope unions work with the province to minimize the effects of cuts over the next four years.

Later in the news conference, Kenney said the Opposition and union leaders are treating public-sector cuts as though they are the arrival of the “apocalypse.”

But Kenney says his United Conservative government is taking a much more measured approach to trimming its budget than former premier Ralph Klein did in the 1990s.