(EDMONTON, AB) April 1, 2025: The United Conservative Caucus is raising the alarm on the deep and growing alliance between the Alberta NDP and the Trudeau-Carney Liberals after former NDP Cabinet Minister and front-bench critic Shannon Phillips publicly endorsed the federal Liberal candidate in Lethbridge.
Phillips, who served as Minister of Environment and Parks under Rachel Notley and remained one of the most vocal members of the NDP caucus until recently, is now actively campaigning for the Liberal Party of Canada. The Alberta NDP and federal Liberals have long been aligned in their priorities. Both introduced a carbon tax. Both worked against Alberta’s energy industry. And both continue to ignore the constitutional rights of provinces to develop their own resources and determine their future.
“Shannon Phillips spent years pushing Trudeau-style policies in Alberta, and now she’s openly supporting the Carney Liberals,” said Chief Government Whip Shane Getson. “The NDP isn’t even pretending to stand up for Alberta anymore — they’re campaigning for the same party that has been against Alberta for the last 9 years.”
Phillips’ endorsement comes just days after former NDP MLA Rod Loyola launched his own campaign for the Liberals in Edmonton-Gateway. Loyola, who once praised dictator Fidel Castro and called for a communist revolution in a publicly posted rap video, abandoned the Nenshi NDP only to reappear days later as a Liberal candidate.
Also joining the Liberal ranks is former NDP Service Alberta Minister Stephanie McLean — who once bragged in the Legislature: “Service Alberta, I’m happy to say, actually has the most laws and regulations of all of the departments.” (Hansard, April 6, 2017). McLean’s open celebration of government overreach reveals the kind of red tape and bureaucracy every Canadian can expect under a Carney-led Liberal government — with NDP alumni leading the charge.
“It’s not just a few individuals. This is a pattern,” said Getson. “Top NDP insiders are backing the Liberals. Shannon Phillips, Rod Loyola, Stephanie McLean — there is no daylight between the NDP and the Liberals. Their values are the same. Their priorities are the same. And their policies — from the carbon tax to anti-energy activism to centralizing power in Ottawa — are the same. The kicker and the question is: why are the federal NDP’s even running candidates? It looks like they have zero support from their provincial members”
The United Conservative Caucus will continue to stand up for Alberta — cutting taxes, creating jobs, and standing up to Ottawa.
