Alberta cabinet minister resigns, citing concerns over procurement

February 25, 2025 Canuck

Alberta Infrastructure Minister Peter Guthrie has resigned from his position, citing a lack of confidence in the government’s procurement practices.

Peter Guthrie, the United Conservative Party MLA for Airdrie-Cochrane, posted his letter of resignation from cabinet to X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday morning.

“In recent months, I have voiced concerns regarding the Government of Alberta’s procurement practices across all departments,” Guthrie wrote.

“As Minister of Infrastructure, I had line of sight into these processes and took steps to address inconsistencies and recommend improvements as part of my fiduciary duty.

“This included introducing Bill 13 and proposing a Financial Oversight Committee to review and advise on major government contracts.”

If passed, Bill 13, the Real Property Governance Act, would require provincial agencies, boards and commissions to give the province first right of refusal when they’re selling surplus land and buildings.

The proposed change affects Alberta’s post-secondary institutions, school jurisdictions and charter schools, Alberta Health Services and numerous government organizations, including the Alberta Social Housing Corporation.

“If implemented, such a committee could have been instrumental in preventing some of the issues we are not seeing in Alberta Health and AHS. Unfortunately, the majority of Cabinet does not appear to share my concerns,” Guthrie said.

“For this reason, I have decided to step down and return to caucus as a private member, where I can continue to voice my concerns and hold Cabinet accountable with honesty and integrity.”

Earlier this month, Guthrie urged Premier Danielle Smith to remove Health Minister Adriana LaGrange from her post while investigations continue into serious allegations a fired Alberta Health Services CEO has made about major health contracts.

In a memo sent to his cabinet colleagues, Guthrie urged quick action, and a readiness to hand any potential criminal matters to the RCMP.

CBC News has obtained a copy of the memo, which was sent on Feb. 13, and confirmed the authenticity with a source familiar with its contents.

Former AHS executive Athana Mentzelopoulos has alleged that the government pushed her out of her top job after she launched investigations into what she describes as conflicts of interest and questionable costs of AHS deals with private surgical facilities, as well as with the medical supplier behind the $70-million purchase of children’s pain medicine from Turkey.

Those claims reached the court Feb. 12, when she filed a wrongful dismissal lawsuit against the government and AHS. The claims in the lawsuit have not been tested in court.

CBC News has reached out to Smith and Guthrie for comment.

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