From UCP cabinet minister to Alberta Party leader - Peter Guthrie reflects on eventful 2025

In this week's episode of The Line Alberta podcast, Rob Breakenridge sits down for a conversation with Airdrie-Cochrane MLA Peter Guthrie, who just recently became leader of the Alberta Party.

Guthrie, of course, started the year as a member of Danielle Smith's cabinet, before stepping down over his concerns about how the government was handling the controversy around health care contracts and procurement. His calls for a public inquiry into the matter led to his expulsion from the UCP caucus.

Since then, Guthrie has become a sharp critic of the Smith government and has been organizing to present Albertans with a more moderate - and federalist - conservative option. Efforts to revive the Alberta PC Party have been met with lawsuit threats from the UCP and ultimately legislative roadblocks in the form of Bill 14.

In this episode, we discuss Guthrie's own political journey and what future holds for the Alberta Party and its possible rebranding. We'll also discuss the referendum question whether the UCP has been co-opted by the separatist movement, and what it all means for the possibility of an early election in 2026.

Chapters

• 0:00 Intro
• 0:31 Peter Guthrie
• 28:47 Outro