Two cabinet ministers say money a key factor in using Charter override on teachers

EDMONTON — Two Alberta cabinet ministers say money was a key factor in the United Conservative government's decision to use the Charter's notwithstanding clause to override teachers' rights and shut down a provincewide strike.

Infrastructure Minister Martin Long, in a November letter to constituents, says the government could not risk allowing the labour dispute to go to arbitration and put the province at risk of paying out hundreds of millions of dollars.

"An arbitrator would likely have sought a middle ground between the two proposals, leaving taxpayers on the hook for hundreds of millions, potentially billions, in additional costs," he wrote.

"Albertans elected this government to make responsible choices — not to delegate them," the letter said.

Education Minister Demetrios Nicolai