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Alberta's long-standing Progressive Conservative government has transformed Alberta into a virtual one-party province on its claims of openness, transparency and accountability.

Democracy Derailed goes deep into the machinery of government to reveal how the Tories have methodically maintained their grip on power by dodging accountability, manipulating public opinion and stifling dissent both inside and outside of government. In doing so, the Tories have undermined the very foundation of democracy: government must be accountable to the people it is elected to serve. In this ground-breaking, first-person account, Kevin Taft exposes how Alberta's Tories derailed democracy and gives his prescription for putting it back on track.

Visit www.democracyderailed.ca to see the web site set up for the book and and allows you to explore further into the issues it raises.

Kevin Taft never thought he?d be a politician. A public policy analyst and head of his own Edmonton-based consulting company, Kevin's life took a sharp turn when he returned to Alberta in 1994 after a year away studying for a business degree.?Alberta had changed,? he recalls. “The government was gutting our health care system without a plan, throwing people's lives into chaos.? Kevin watched in growing dismay as the government took aim at education and other public services Albertans had carefully built over many years.In 1997, Kevin wrote Shredding the Public Interest, a national bestseller which confirmed many Albertans? concerns about the PCs. Clear Answers, a second bestseller in 2000, co-authored by Gillian Steward, exploded the myths of private, for-profit health care.Kevin stepped into public life in 2001, handily winning his Edmonton Riverview seat in the provincial election. In 2004, he was elected Leader of the Alberta Liberals and of the Loyal Opposition in the Alberta Legislature. In 2007 his third book was published, Democracy Derailed, and in 2012 his fourth book, Follow the Money, which he co-authored with Mel MacMillan and Junaid Jahangir. Both books continue Kevin's critical analysis of Alberta politics and public policy. Kevin stepped down from the Legislature when he chose not to run in the 2012 election. He continues to live and write in Edmonton.

Kevin Taft's profile page

"It's highly readable with numerous anecdotes from legislature sessions and committee meetings. . . The book has an anecdotal style that should make it of interest to politicos of any stripe."
-- St. Albert Gazette

"Going beyond merely identifying these many and varied problems with government, Taft goes a step further and actually offers solutions. . . In a province with a one-sided, Tory-friendly media, this book comes as a welcome alternative."
-- Cold Lake Sun

"Required reading for Albertans, for Canadians, or for anyone who wishes to see how a modern democracy can devolve into a one-party state. The handy, portable Democracy Derailed packs a lot of dissent into its 112 well-designed, reader-friendly pages. . . Sure, for the $10 cover price, you could buy two memberships to the Conservative Party. Make the sacrifice, though - for just a sawbuck, it's quite a read."
-- See Magazine

"If Albertans care enough to tune in, they will find in Taft's thin volume evidence enough to shake them from their collective stupor."
-- Jeremy Klaszus, Tyee Books

"Democracy Derailed is a book that should be required reading for anyone wanting to cast a vote in Alberta."
-- Russ Prusakowski, Columnist, The Gateway, University of Alberta

"This is an important and vital book that every Albertan should read."
-- Todd Babiak, Author and Edmonton Journal Columnist

". . . disturbing. If someone from another province were to read this book, they would simply be aghast that this can go on in the 21st century in a Canadian province."
-- Keith Brownsey, Mt. Royal College Political Science Professor