The debate on the oil royalties has been leading to record traffic to provincial websites:

“The most difficult time in a democracy is when everybody is paying attention,” said Anthony Sayers, a political scientist at the University of Calgary. “People are paying attention. People believe they have vested interest here in the outcome of the policy.”

Nowhere is interest more evident than on the province’s website, where visits to the report surpassed six figures in just 48 hours. Compare that with last spring’s budget, which received 12,000 hits in its first week.

“It shows the interest not only within the province itself, but outside,” said Jay O’Neill, spokesman for Alberta Finance.

“It just tells you how important an issue this is.”

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