Premier Danielle Smith is forming a panel that will review policies enacted by the Government of Alberta during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo: Government of Alberta)

By David Opinko/LethbridgeNewsNOW

Provincial Politics

Premier Smith forming panel to review COVID-19 policies in Alberta

Jan 19, 2023 | 3:26 PM

Alberta’s premier says she wants to learn how to better respond to public health emergencies in the future.

Danielle Smith has announced the formation of an expert panel that will review the legislation and governance practices used by the Government of Alberta during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There are valuable lessons we learned from the Alberta government’s response to the COVID-19 public health emergency,” says Smith. “It’s important that we apply those lessons to strengthen our management of future public health crises, and the panel’s recommendations will be key in doing so.”

Preston Manning has been named the chair of the panel. He is the founder of both the Reform Party of Canada and the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance, and was the MP for Calgary Southwest from 1993-2001.

No other panel members have been finalized at this time, but Manning will make recommendations to Smith in the coming months on who else should join the group.

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Together, the panel will review legislation and governance practices in the context of a public health emergency in the following areas:

• General public health and health information
• Mental health and wellness
• Child and student health, mental health and education
• Health professionals’ practice standards
• Effective implementation of emergency measures
• Protection of rights and freedoms
• Economic and financial effects
• Employment standards

Manning says, “It’s crucial that we take the opportunity to review the province’s COVID-19 response and examine whether and how that approach can be improved in future health emergencies. I look forward to working with my fellow panelists and hearing from Albertans about how the province can best achieve this objective.”

Members of the public are invited to submit their feedback on this topic, which can be done on line on the Government of Alberta’s website.

The panel has a total budget of $2 million, which includes Manning’s salary of $253,000.

The provincial government is expecting to receive the panel’s recommendations by November 15, 2023.

“Over a quarter of a million dollars is a lot of Albertans’ money to hire someone to chair a committee that has obviously been struck for political gain,” said David Shepherd, Alberta NDP Health Critic.

“I know families who are struggling to pay their utility bills and their car insurance will ask why this is how their tax dollars are being spent, and health-care workers will be wondering why our ambulances and hospitals are starved for resources.”

“This is a desperate call for help from Danielle Smith for Preston Manning to help cement her support on the far right.”

In 2020, the UCP paid KPMG $475,000 for an earlier review of Alberta’s pandemic programs. That report was released to the public in August 2021 and was damaging to the UCP government, showing clear evidence and recommendations that the government ignored entirely. A legislative committee was also struck by the UCP to review the Public Health Act.

“So much money being wasted purely for political gain is not only an insult to health-care workers but to all Albertans. Everyone should be outraged by this misuse of taxpayers’ dollars,” said Shepherd.

“For the cost of Smith’s taxpayer-funded COVID-19 sideshow, the government could instead give $600 affordability payments to another 3,700 students and single-income earners.”