Good morning and welcome. My name is Audrey Cormack and I'm president of the Alberta Federation of Labour.

As most of you already know, last week the AFL held what has been described as an Alternative Growth Summit here in this hotel.

Unlike the government Summit, which will be held next week, our conference featured completely open registration. We did not restrict access to a small, hand-picked group of delegates.

And unlike the government summit -- which limits its delegates to debating ideas which fall with (and I quote) "the existing fiscal framework" -- our conference had an entirely open agenda.

The results of our open-door and open-agenda policy were impressive. More than 250 delegates showed up, representing a wide range of social, labour and environmental groups.

For obvious reasons, the majority of our delegates -- or about 55 per cent -- came as representatives from various unions. But the rest came from outside the labour movement.

To name just a few, there were delegates from groups representing students and seniors. Their were representatives from women's groups and environmental groups. And there were delegates from groups representing the poor and the homeless.

As a result of this diversity, we were able to conduct discussions with what we are convinced was a truly representative cross-section of Albertans.

But our Alternative Growth Summit -- which we officially called the 'Investing in Tomorrow" conference -- was about more than just 250 people gathering in the same place. It was also about ideas and vision. And on that score, the conference was also incredibly successful.

The discussions that took place in our workshops were a real breath of fresh air.

When economists and business people talk about the economy, they usually focus exclusively on the bottom line. But delegates to our conference explored the human dimensions of the economy. They talked about how the economy effects individuals, families and communities.

Almost without exception, our delegates argued that economic development should be held up to a new standard.

They argued that an economy can only be described as healthy if it actually improves conditions for ordinary working people. Economic growth means nothing if hospital beds are still closing and classrooms are still over-crowded. And it means nothing if ordinary people have less money in their pockets and people still feel insecure in their jobs.

Today I am happy to present you with the report from our conference.

We call it the "People First" report because that's what our delegates said was most important. They said that the economy should be here for people, not the other way around.

In the forty pages of the report, we summarize the major concerns raised by delegates to our conference and we outline their recommendations for change.

We have also included a summary of the economic analysis that delegates heard from several of our conference speakers.

During the course of our Summit, delegates did a lot of hard work.

They came up with recommendations on a wide range of issues -- everything from education and health care to forestry and the environment.

Overall, they developed 99 recommendations -- which I encourage all of you to read.

But -- to briefly summarize what's in the report -- I can tell you this: like many other Albertans, delegates at our Summit shared a sense of disappointment and frustration with the Alberta economy.

On one hand, they acknowledged that Alberta is the wealthiest province in Canada. They acknowledged that we have the most productive work force, a booming business sector and huge government surpluses.

Yet despite all these outward signs of economic strength, our delegates argued that the provincial economy is not working for all Albertans.

Wages have fallen below the national average. Full-time, permanent jobs are becoming harder and harder to find. Our rules and regulations to protect things like the environment, workplace safety and human rights have been gutted. And our public services have been dangerously weakened by the deepest budget cuts in Canadian history.

The message that was repeated over and over again at our conference was that things don't have to be this way. In a wealthy province like Alberta, we can afford to do better.

But our conference wasn't just about complaining. It was also a forum for constructive alternatives.

In particular, conference delegates called on the government to take action to ensure that all Albertans share in the current prosperity.

With this in mind, our delegates called for an increased the minimum wage -- so that working people in Alberta don't have to live in poverty.

They called for massive re-investment in public services like education and health care -- so that our children are properly prepared for the future and so that our communities remain healthy.

They called for stronger labour laws -- so that working people have access to the protection they need in the workplace.

They called for the Elimination of the Debt Retirement Act -- so that our huge government surpluses can be used to build a better province.

They also called for a commission to develop a new tax and royalty system -- one that would be fair for both individuals and corporations and one that would generate enough revenue to maintain the kind of high-quality services that Albertans deserve.

Our delegates also called on government to abandon it's move towards self-regulation for business. They said the government should make and enforce strict regulations that protect the environment and promote things like workplace safety and human rights.

Most importantly, delegates to the Alternative Summit called on our leaders to make sure that government economic policies actually promote and protect the interests of ordinary working Albertans.

There was a broad consensus from all of our workshops that the government of Alberta must become more active in the social and economic life of the province.

In the end, all the people participating in the "Investing in Tomorrow" conference agreed that growth for sake of growth is not enough.

Growth that boosts corporate profits but does not improve the lives of ordinary people is not acceptable.

Our conference concluded that the government should abandon economic policies based soley on the notion that "the market knows best. " Instead, they should embrace a new kind of economic philosophy that puts people first. Only by taking this step will the Alberta government be able to ensure that all Albertans share in the Alberta Advantage.

That is the essense of this report.

Later today, we will be delivering the report -- and the important message that it holds -- to the organizers of the government Growth Summit.

Mike Percy, who as you know is the chair of the government summit, has promised to present copies to all of the government summit delegates.

By giving our report to participants at the government summit we hope to accomplish two things.

First, we hope to make it perfectly clear that not all Albertans agree with the business-dominated approach to economic issues that is currently embraced by the provincial government. Second, we hope to demonstrate that there are viable, workable alternatives.

In conclusion, I'd just like to say that we at the Alberta Federation of Labour are very proud of all the work that was done by delegates to our Alternative Summit. And we are very proud of this report.

In many ways, we feel that delegates to our conference were more representative of the "real Alberta" than the group of hand-picked participants going to the government summit.

We are also convinced that the concerns raised by delegates at our conference are the same concerns on that are on the minds of most other Albertans.

The government wants to talk about tax cuts for business and further de-regulation. But that's not want most Albertans want.

They want to talk about restoring high-quality education and health care. They want to talk about restoring our parks and protecting our environment. They want to start talking about building an economy that puts people first.

That's why our report is so important -- it reflects the real priorities of Albertans.

With that in mind, we challenge the government and participants in the Growth summit to take a serious look at our recommendations. They provide a road map for the kind of economic policies that most Albertans would like to see implemented by government now and into the 21st century.

Thank you.