Mike Percy, seen in Calgary in 2011, says Jim Prentice will be remembered for his integrity, commitment to public service, and his honesty.Chris Bolin/The Globe and Mail
Mike Percy was an Alberta Liberal who had recently stepped down as the dean of the University of Alberta's business school. While he had heard of Jim Prentice, they never met before the 'arranged marriage' that made him the incoming premier's chief of staff. Mr. Percy spoke with Justin Giovannetti about Mr. Prentice's lasting mark on Alberta politics. Mr. Prentice was killed in an airplane crash on Oct. 13 in eastern B.C.
You were a long-time Alberta Liberal, not a Progressive Conservative. How did Jim Prentice persuade you to become his chief of staff?
It was both Jim Prentice and [former Edmonton mayor] Stephen Mandel. The pitch was really simple: He wanted to bring a fresh look to the premier's office where it was run by professionals and people were treated with respect. That was his vision. He wanted a good relationship with the public service. He wanted good governance. And it was like an arranged marriage because we hadn't met before.
What is your clearest memory from your time as Mr. Prentice's chief of staff?
When you go out of the premier's office, there's a rotunda where all the portraits of premiers are hung. In many instances when he'd run to the House, he'd run into a group of school kids and he'd spend 10 minutes with them. His press secretary would be pulling at his arm, but he'd just sit and talk about Alberta and politics as a type of public service, as an honourable profession. He'd give them high-fives, it was genuine. These kids would look at him in amazement.
Mr. Prentice's election campaign centred on a pretty gloomy message of the economic challenges ahead. Why was the coming oil crash chosen as the message to the electorate?
The words people use to describe him are integrity, commitment to public service, honesty. I think he wanted an honest conversation with Albertans that wouldn't be easy but had to be done. He laid out a budget with a three-year horizon to get us through this fiscal crisis. Jim was not a BSer; he was always straight-forward and that's how he wanted to run his campaign. He didn't think you could whistle and pretend it wasn't serious.
Quitting as party leader on election night and refusing to take his seat as an MLA will be part of Mr. Prentice's story. It upset a lot of people. Up close, how did he take the loss?
It took him a while to come to terms with the election result, not in the sense of questioning it, but because he hadn't delivered the goods. He felt such a responsibility for the loss. He'd run a campaign that was straightforward on the magnitude of the fiscal issues facing the province. He felt comfortable with the campaign he had run, that was clear, but he was at the helm when the dynasty ended and he felt badly about that.
Even though his term was only eight months, what do you think Mr. Prentice's legacy will be as premier?
His legacy will be seen through some of the initiatives that have come forward with the current government on climate change and economic diversification. …
He was a remarkable man. This is such a loss. He had come to the end of a chapter in his life and he was starting the second chapter where I think he would have become an elder statesman, like Preston Manning or Paul Martin, because he had such an abiding interest in public policy.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
Justin Giovannetti