Alberta NDP has raised concerns over the expulsion of former UCP MLA and infrastructure minister Peter Guthrie from caucus and the escalating "CorruptCare" scandal.
Guthrie was expelled on Wednesday. On April 14, he voted with the opposition NDP on a motion tabled by NDP Health Critic Sarah Hoffman calling for a judge-led public inquiry into Alberta Health Services (AHS) procurement allegations "CorruptCare."
Also on Wednesday, Guthrie released his cabinet resignation letter dated February 25, which accused "possibly" Premier Danielle Smith and Health Minister Adriana LaGrange of “deliberately” misleading the Health Cabinet Committee.
The controversy involves RCMP and auditor general investigations. The former AHS CEO is suing the province for $1.7 million for wrongful dismissal, alleging she was fired for investigating corruption and manipulation in health service procurement.
Smith's former chief of staff Marshall Smith is implicated in the controversy, but has denied wrongdoing.
“You know, we have been calling for so long for ethical, competent government that we just don’t get with the UCP,” said NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi in a media scrum on Wednesday.
“And here’s the thing, we have a guy (Guthrie) who actually stood up for something, who stood up for integrity, who stood up for ethics. He said his own government was being obstructionist. He said, if they have nothing to hide, why don’t they just call a public inquiry? I’m not sure I can add to that beyond saying that this government slaps you down if you stand up for Albertans.”
Danielle Smith said on Wednesday in the government’s defence, “The former AHS CEO saw that there were different prices being paid to different service providers for the same service. And so, the minister encouraged her to try to get to the bottom of why that was. The former AHS CEO was never able to identify that there had been anything wrong, no wrongdoing had been done, and that’s why we’re now launching an investigation.”
The allegations against the province and Marshall Smith have not been proven in court.