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Errors Of Judgment

P.A. MLA Hargrave resigns as cabinet minister following ill-judged Palm Springs visit

Jan 4, 2021 | 3:38 PM

Premier Scott Moe has accepted the resignation from cabinet of Joe Hargrave, the Minister of Highways and MLA for Prince Albert Carlton.

A media release issued Monday afternoon by the Premier’s office said Hargrave will remain a member of the government caucus and MLA.

Earlier Monday the opposition New Democrats accused Hargrave of lying about the reasons for his admittedly misjudged trip to California last month.

“It’s clear that his decision to travel to Palm Springs just before Christmas was an error of judgment and it sent the wrong message at a time when everyone in this province was being asked to limit their household gatherings over Christmas and the holiday season (due to COVID-19),” Moe said in a media conference Monday..

“While out-of-country travel is not prohibited at this time, we have been recommending against any unnecessary travel. Admittedly, I did not explicitly tell MLAs that they could not travel outside of country, leaving it to them to determine whether their travel was necessary.”

Hargrave has apologized for the visit during the COVID restrictions he says he took as an essential business trip to finalize the sale of his holiday home in Palm Springs. He said he will return this week and has called his trip “an error of judgment,” a characterization Premier Scott Moe said he agreed with.

Moe was made aware of the trip beforehand.

But NDP ethics critic Matt Love said real estate listings show Hargrave only put his property on the market Dec. 26, four days after he travelled and is suggesting Hargrave is simply making an excuse for ignoring COVID travel rules and taking a Christmas holiday in the sun.

“Anyone who owns a house knows there’s a big difference between finalizing a sale and listing it,” Love said in a media release Monday. “Why did the minister feel the need to lie about this? Was he just trying to make his flimsy excuse for ignoring the rules sound better when really all he wanted was a sunny Christmas vacation by the golf course and pool in his gated community?

“Every person in Saskatchewan has had their personal or professional life affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Love added. “People have cancelled vacations and business trips, missed visiting sick and dying relatives and generally put many aspects of their life on hold. Scott Moe and his ministers seem to think they are too important to do the same.”

Love is also citing reports that Corrections Minister Christine Tell took a trip to Palm Springs in November to visit a sick relative.

“Everyone has sympathy for those who have friends and family who are sick that they can’t see,” Love said. “What we’re asking is why Sask. Party Government Ministers think rules and directives don’t apply to them? Why are they telling regular people to do one thing and then doing another themselves?”

Asked about the discrepancies in the timing of Hargrave’s arrival in California and the listing, Moe said they were “irrelevant.”

“The issue here is the perception that we have a different set of rules for governing members versus the broader population,” Moe said.

“There were no rules that were broken by Minister Hargrave in his travel. However, he has deemed that it was not the right decision and he has offered his resignation here today.”

With Hargrave’s resignation as a cabinet minister Premier Moe has appointed Carrot River Valley MLA Fred Bradshaw as the Minister of Highways and Minister responsible for the Water Security Agency.

Alberta MLAs punished for COVID travel

Meanwhile the hammer has dropped on members of the Alberta government caucus and staff who recently travelled abroad during the COVID-19 crisis.

Premier Jason Kenney, in a Facebook post, says he has accepted the resignation of Municipal Affairs Minister Tracy Allard and he has asked his chief of staff Jamie Huckabay to step down.

Other backbench members of his United Conservative caucus who travelled to sunnier climes over the holidays have been stripped of responsibilities. Jeremy Nixon is no longer parliamentary secretary for civil society and Jason Stephan is out at Treasury Board.

Tanya Fir, Pat Rehn and Tany Yao have also lost their legislature committee responsibilities.

Kenney says he has listened to anger from the public in recent days and acted.

NDP responds to Hargrave resignation

Later on Monday NDP leader Ryan Meili said Premier Moe “had refused to show leadership, saying three days ago Hargrave’s actions were fine.”

Meili added, in part:

“Today when his [Hargrave’s] bogus story about finalizing the sale of his house was exposed, Premier Moe said it was “irrelevant” but because of public pressure the Minister had to go. He shows no real understanding of the anger his government’s arrogance has caused. We all know none of this would have happened if they hadn’t been caught.”

Editor’s note: this story was amended Jan.5 to include comments from Premier Scott Moe.

With files from CKOM and The Canadian Press

glenn.hicks@jpbg.ca

On Twitter:@princealbertnow