Letter to Ethics Commissioner from Paul Hinman, MLA 
re: Allegations Against Department of Energy Officials

December 9, 2009

Mr. Neil Wilkinson

Ethics Commissioner of Alberta

Office of the Ethics Commissioner

Suite 1250, 9925 - 109 Street NW

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada   T5K 2J8

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Dear Mr. Wilkinson:

RE:  Allegations against Department of Energy Officials

A similar letter has been sent to Premier Stelmach on this issue by our Leader, Danielle  Smith, and I am sending a formal request for an independent investigation to your  office. A copy of that letter to Premier Stelmach is attached for your reference. By now,  you may have read media stories in both the Calgary Herald and the Edmonton Journal  regarding allegations of ethical breaches by government officials related to Bill 50 and  Alberta’s new transmission policies and projects.

When the Wildrose Alliance Party raised concerns regarding Bill 50, one of our main  concerns was the lack of accountability and independence in the regulatory process.  These concerns were dismissed by the government in response to questions from all  opposition parties, stakeholder groups and concerned Albertans. However, in light of  these disturbing allegations, it is clear that the independence of the regulatory process  and the body that is supposed to critically evaluate energy proposals may be called into  question by the alleged actions and comments of Department of Energy officials.

Specifically, we believe that your office is the place where an independent investigation  of this matter can occur. We believe that your office will be able to determine the  process that was used, what comments and commitments were made by government  officials and whether or not any breach of ethics or the public trust actually occurred.

In light of these very serious allegations we believe that the ability of the government to  conduct business on behalf of the people of this great province has been compromised  and harmed. We need to move quickly so that Albertans can know exactly what  happened and if any unethical or untoward behaviour occurred during this process.

Thank you very much for your time and prompt attention to this request. If you have any  questions in the meantime, please feel free to contact me at your earliest convenience

(403-216-5421 or 780-638-3505).

I look forward to hearing from you regarding this matter.

Yours very truly,

Paul Hinman

Deputy Leader, Wildrose Alliance Party

MLA-Calgary Glenmore

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