According to the First Quarter Fiscal Update released, Alberta's spending on health, education, social services, transportation and other government programs is 52% higher than it was six years ago, in contrast to only 12% population growth and 14% inflation.

After promising Albertans before the 2001 election that "the only way taxes are going is down," Premier Ralph Klein increased your taxes by $641 million in the March 2002 Budget. Somebody had to pay for the 52% program spending increase these past six years, and that somebody is you, the Alberta taxpayer.

Five months after raising your taxes, Premier Klein's government has now forecast an additional, unexpected $828 million in revenues. How much of this extra $828 million will go to tax cuts One half One third One tenth Nothing in fact. Not one penny. Instead, spending is rising again, from $18.5 billion to $19.5 billion.

For Ralph's big spending Tories this 52% increase is a source of pride, not shame. Alberta's PCs happily give double-digit salary increases to nurses, teachers, doctors, MLAs, government employees and other public sector workers. Rather than reforming the health care system, the Tories have simply tossed more money at it: 73% more than six years ago. Rather than introducing innovation and accountability into the education system through a voucher system with merit pay for teachers, the Tories simply toss 43% more money at it than six years ago.

During his first four years in office, Ralph led a revolution to reduce the size of government. But since 1996, spending increases have outpaced inflation and population growth. If spending on government programs since 1996 had increased every year to keep pace with Alberta's population growth and inflation, spending today would be $16.3 billion instead of $19.5 billion. Alberta taxpayers would have an extra $3.2 billion to spend, give to charity, save or invest without the "help" of bureaucrats and politicians. Further, Alberta would be completely debt-free today, not paying $530 million in debt servicing costs this year. Together, less government spending combined with the absence of debt servicing costs would allow for a $3.7 billion tax cut, now. We could be paying 2% provincial income tax instead of 10%. Or we could keep income tax at 10% and choose to eliminate provincial school property tax and health care premiums and VLT revenues and the nine-cents-per litre provincial fuel tax.

But gone are the days of Ralph's Revolution, when a dollar was best left in the hands of the taxpayer who earned it. In Ralph's world today, bureaucrats and politicians have the amazing ability to spend other people's money with more wisdom and prudence than taxpayers themselves.

Do Albertans really have better health care than six years ago Are children getting a better education And if the answer to both questions is "yes," are the improvements as great as what they would have been if people had had the freedom to spend more of their own money Until taxes become voluntary, government has a moral obligation to answer these questions.

But don't hold your breath waiting for Ralph's so-called "conservatives" to answer these questions. They're too busy spending your tax cut.