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The panicked, kneejerk cuts demanded by Jason Kenney and the UCP would have stunted Alberta’s recovery and hurt Albertans more.

So what does our improving economy mean as we begin the task of preparing the 2018 budget in earnest?

It means we don’t have to risk the recovery underway by embracing reckless cuts. But we do have to take meaningful steps down the path to balance, as we said we would.

That’s why we recently expanded a salary freeze for management and non-union employees through to September 2019. We’re also expanding its scope — from the core public service to the government’s extended agencies, boards and commissions. Finally, we are freezing the size of the Alberta public service. These steps alone will save more than $100 million.

We will continue the hard work of finding savings. And while we have already found $750 million in savings this year without firing thousands of teachers and nurses, we know that more work needs to be done.

That’s why I look forward to receiving Albertans’ input on our path to balance.

I want to hear from them on where they think we can tighten our belts further and where their priorities are in terms of services we should protect.

This all with one Alberta value in mind: Quality education and health care should not depend on the price of oil.

We cannot choose the price of oil.

But we can choose our response to it and we chose well. The recovery that’s underway is helped by the choices we made. Now we have more choices to make.