Don’t spend money until you have it firmly in hand.

That’s the principle Alberta Finance Minister Jason Nixon was preaching Wednesday at a Calgary Chamber of Commerce luncheon, as the province is widely expected to pocket a budget surplus for this fiscal year — less than four months after projecting a $9.4-billion deficit.

Varcoe: 'Alberta has been here before,' says finance minister as oil prices spark budget turnaround, energy rebates Back to video

However, higher-than-expected oil prices triggered by the war in the Middle East have redrawn the budget landscape, even with this week’s drop in global energy markets.

“The situation has changed,” Nixon told the business audience.

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“The conflict in the Middle East has pushed oil prices higher and added volatility, while also increasing uncertainty around the outlook for global growth and inflation . . . Alberta has been here before, flush with temporary increases in resource revenue, spending accelerating then to match. And then prices drop, revenues dry up, but the deficit stays. We are not going to do that again.”

Nixon delivered his message shortly before the province announced it was replacing an existing program that provides relief on provincial fuel taxes — when oil prices are high — with a new rebate initiative.

It will provide $100 payments to more than three million adult Albertans, starting in July, whose household income is less than........

© Calgary Herald