Fort McMurray will have some solid representation on Alberta’s “Fair Deal” panel.

Premier Jason Kenney announced the launch of the panel on Saturday at the Manning Centre “What Next” Conference – with MLA for Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo Tany Yao being among the group.

The panel will consult Albertans on how to best secure a fair deal for Alberta within the Federation.

Yao tells Mix News he intends to consult the community to find out what’s in the best interest of Fort McMurrayites.

“I am very excited and very happy Premier Kenney chose me to be apart of this panel. I look forward to representing our region in the best manner and I’m glad he chose someone from Fort McMurray because we literally are that ‘golden goose’. We need that support, not just from our province but from our nation.”

The panel will be tasked with looking at ways to best advance Alberta’s economic interests – such as the construction of energy pipelines.

Yao notes if any community can resonate with Kenney’s words over the weekend – it’s ours.

“We tend to have fewer services, less everything – compared to the rest of the provinces. Those are the same arguments the province has for the rest of the nation. So, when we look at communities with fewer resources and fewer benefits – it’s Fort McMurray.”

In addition, the panel will consult experts, and hold town hall meetings across Alberta and undertake research to inform their recommendations.

Yao says they will be looking at measures taken in other provinces to help advance Alberta’s interests.

“Things that are prevalent in Quebec and Ontario and we just want to look at what other provinces have in our confederation and see if we can achieve those same gains. Because again, we just tend to be neglected.”

The panel will look to seek public consultation between November 16 and January 30, 2020 – and complete its report by March 31, 2020.

The mandate for the panel can be found on the government of Alberta’s website.