Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Justice Minister Mickey Amery stand together during the swearing in of her cabinet in Edmonton on Friday, June 9, 2023. Alberta is proposing legislation to make it easier to change dollar limits and rules surrounding gifts for elected officials.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson.
EDMONTON – Alberta is proposing legislation to make it easier to change dollar limits and rules surrounding gifts for elected officials.
It’s a move the Opposition NDP calls a self-serving ploy by Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative government to better position itself on the receiving end of perks.
Currently, non-monetary gifts to politicians are capped at $200, and elected officials can accept tickets from any one source up to $400 a year.
Those changes are enshrined in law, but Justice Minister Mickey Amery has introduced a bill allowing cabinet to make changes to dollar amounts and rules as it sees fit without going back to the house to pass a bill.
Amery says it allows cabinet the flexibility to make changes that reflect the rise of prices and costs.
NDP justice critic Irfan Sabir is calling the move unethical, and says letting Smith’s government set the rules around gifts is like allowing a teenager to set their own curfew.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2023.
