Alberta infrastructure minister 5th UCP member to admit accepting free Oilers playoff tickets
Alberta Minister of Infrastructure Peter Guthrie announces Bill 25 at the Alberta legislature building on Oct. 20, 2024. (Brandon Lynch/CTV News Edmonton)
Alberta's Infrastructure Minister Peter Guthrie says he accepted free Edmonton Oilers NHL playoff tickets and says it did not contravene government conflict-of-interest rules.
Guthrie says he attended Oilers home games during the team's playoff run last spring as a guest of MHCare Medical, a medical supply and distribution company.
Guthrie didn't specify exactly how many games he attended but he says he has no "business or personal relations" with Sam Mraiche, the CEO of MHCare Medical.
He's the second Alberta cabinet minister to say he attended a game courtesy of the company, which was involved in the government's $80-million deal to procure children's pain medication from Turkey.
The medicine came from Istanbul-based Atabay Pharmaceuticals but its arrival was delayed due to regulatory issues and label problems and hospitals eventually stopped using the medication over safety concerns.
Utilities Minister Nathan Neudorf has said he attended a game as a guest of Mraiche, while Premier Danielle Smith accepted free tickets from Explore Edmonton and Invest Alberta, and Sport Minister Joseph Schow and Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis have also said they attended games but didn't say who provided the tickets.
Alberta NDP Naheed Nenshi called the situation a "scandal" on Wednesday.
"Should the premier go if the Oilers make the Stanley Cup? I don't think that's such a bad thing," Nenshi said. "The problem here is the incredible amount of coverup … I am calling for real disclosure, I am calling for the premier to come clean now, tell us which ministers attended, which staff members attended, and to revise the ethics rules in the future."
Nenshi said the NDP will be introducing a new set of ethics requirements on gifts, which his party members will follow.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 30, 2024
With files from CTV News Edmonton
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