Allegations have recently surfaced against officials in Premier Smith's government, which has prompted an investigation by Alberta's auditor general.
The investigation is into the procurement practices in the health ministry after it had been reported that there was government interference in the procurement processes.
This was brought on because Alberta Health Services (AHS) chief executive Athana Mentzelopoulos was fired from her position two days prior to her meeting with the auditor general to inform him of the findings of her investigation into the procurement process, and she sent a letter to AHS lawyers stating she was encouraged to take her findings to the police.
Premier Smith put out a statement today (Saturday, Feb. 8) that says these "are troubling allegations and they should be reviewed as quickly as possible."
Because of that, Smith says she will be writing to Auditor General Doug Wylie and asking for an expedited review to be completed.
"I have also directed my officials to ensure that any request for information from Mr. Wylie or his office is dealt with on a fully transparent and expedited basis," Smith explained in the media release. "We need to get to the bottom of this issue quickly to identify any potential wrongdoing, correct it, and address it appropriately."
Smith has also AHS to complete their internal review as soon as possible, and have their results brought to her directly so they can work on making improvements or any necessary adjustments to the process.
AHS has paused the contracting for surgical facilities under review until the internal review findings are delivered.
"As Premier, I was not involved in any wrongdoing. Any insinuation to the contrary is false, baseless and defamatory," Smith continued in her statement. "It’s no secret I have been unhappy with the level and quality of service delivered by AHS and in the inability of AHS to deliver quality and timely healthcare to Albertans. I will continue to relentlessly push forward to make improvements."
She adds that making these improvements requires "difficult decisions and major change, I do not accept the current results. There is a widespread and deep-seated resistance to change that we must overcome."