Ex-minister Guthrie on 'probation,' barred from UCP caucus meetings after quitting cabinet

Jason Markusoff · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 07, 2025 1:53 PM EST | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

Former Alberta infrastructure curate Peter Guthrie is barred from attending UCP caucus meetings pursuing his caller abrupt resignation, arsenic portion of a 30-day probation play he's been placed under.

Guthrie, who discontinue Premier Danielle Smith's furniture successful the aftermath of allegations astir Alberta Health Services contracting, is inactive allowed to beryllium with United Conservative MLAs connected the authorities broadside of the legislature enclosure during this antithetic probation.

Guthrie, the MLA for Airdrie-Cochrane, declined an interrogation request, but helium confirmed to CBC News that he's been barred since Feb. 26 from attending regular caucus meetings oregon authorities committees.

A time earlier, helium confirmed his resignation successful a public letter that stated he'd pushed for changes to authorities contracting that "could person been instrumental successful preventing immoderate of the issues we are present seeing successful Alberta Health and AHS."

After reports archetypal broke astir erstwhile AHS enforcement Athana Mentzelepoulos's allegations astir her dismissal and her concerns with backstage country contracts, Guthrie had argued to furniture colleagues that Smith should region Health Minister Adriana LaGrange until assorted investigations into the ex-CEO's claims could wide the air.

His proposals for the removal of LaGrange and interim AHS CEO Andre Tremblay, reiterated successful an email to furniture reported by CBC News, went unheeded.

Since his resignation, Guthrie has been quoted successful media reports arsenic being captious of his colleagues.

Guthrie utilized to beryllium connected the beforehand enactment of Smith's UCP benches.

After his resignation, helium was moved to the backmost enactment successful the corner, adjacent to MLA Jennifer Johnson. She spent much than a twelvemonth arsenic an autarkic MLA for inflammatory remarks she'd made astir transgender younker — earlier caucus welcomed her into their fold past October.

Questions from CBC News astir Guthrie's probation, sent to the whip's bureau and UCP caucus, were not answered.

"We don't remark connected interior caucus matters," caucus spokesperson Mackenzie Blyth said successful an email.

It's not wide what precedent determination is for the UCP oregon immoderate enactment to enactment a subordinate connected probation. In respective past cases wherever tensions person risen, a caucus has expelled a member, making them beryllium arsenic an independent MLA.

Mentzelopoulos was fired arsenic CEO connected Jan. 8, hardly 1 twelvemonth into a four-year declaration to preside implicit AHS during the Smith government's large restructuring.

Last month, Mentzelopoulos filed a $1.7-million wrongful dismissal suit that claimed she was fired aft facing authorities unit to extremity AHS's reviews into some backstage country session contracts, and what she believed whitethorn beryllium conflicts of interests wrong the agency's procurement unit.

No allegations person been proven successful court, and some LaGrange and AHS person said they volition record statements of defence.

This week, the RCMP confirmed their reappraisal into a ailment it received successful the substance has present evolved into an investigation.

The provincial auditor-general is besides investigating the accusation AHS has forwarded along, and the Smith authorities has asked a erstwhile Manitoba main justice to behaviour his ain peculiar reappraisal of the AHS procurement system.