Alberta government PR branch moved under Premier Danielle Smith's office
An April 29 Order in Council shifted responsibility for the province's Communications and Public Engagement (CPE) department from Treasury Board and Finance to Executive Council, meaning Premier Danielle Smith is now the minister overseeing the branch.
Aside from notices of the order posted to the government website, the province has not publicly commented on the department transfer.
CPE is part of the public service and manages marketing and communications across all government branches.
Previously known as the public affairs bureau, the government communications branch was moved from executive council to treasury board and finance by the then- Alberta NDP government in 2017 after years of complaints from consecutive opposition parties that it was used as a propaganda arm of the premier's office.
Story continues below advertisement
Rakhi Pancholi, deputy leader of the Alberta NDP, said relocating the public relations branch under the premier normalizes the United Conservative government's use of public dollars for partisan purposes.
'What I think has been happening gradually over the last six years is that government communications have become increasingly partisan. And the decision to bring it under executive council and the premier is clearly a decision to formalize that process,' Pancholi said.
Get daily National news
Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
The move will add about 288 full-time employees to Executive Council, which will operate with a budget of $38 million, Smith's press secretary Sam Blackett told the IJF.
The decision to transfer the communications branch was made by cabinet in April, he said.
'The objectives of CPE remain unchanged. As dedicated and non-partisan public servants, CPE staff will continue to communicate and implement the policy priorities of Alberta's government,' Blackett said.
Though the CPE is tasked with delivering factual and non-partisan information about government policies and programs, Pancholi said official social media accounts and news releases have more frequently veered into political territory with messaging 'intended to create a certain narrative' about government policies or 'overt partisan references to the federal government.'
Major initiatives supported by CPE in recent years include the $8 million Tell the Feds advertising campaign opposing federal net-zero emissions regulations and a $7.5 million campaign promoting the Alberta Pension Plan.
Story continues below advertisement
The UCP's transfer of CPE continues the consolidation of the province's communications apparatus and the expansion of the executive council by the Smith government.
Earlier this year, the controversial Canadian Energy Centre, an 'energy war room' created by former premier Jason Kenney's government to counter critics of Alberta's oil sector, was also folded into the premier's office, adding an additional $4.8 million to its budget.
The 2025-26 budget for the premier's office and Executive Council is $25.7 million, up from about $21 million the previous year, which Smith said is needed to cover increased staffing expenses.
An order in council on May 13 designated two additional deputy ministers in that office who answer to Smith, a senior deputy minister of operations and a deputy minister of communications and public engagement.
Enyinnah Okere, former chief operations officer with Edmonton Police Service (EPS), was appointed deputy minister of CPE.
The same order also appoints Justin Krikler, chief administrative officer of EPS's corporate services bureau, as the new deputy minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services.
In their time with the Edmonton police, Okere and Krikler worked under former police chief Dale McFee, who announced his retirement from policing in late 2024 and was hired as deputy minister of Executive Council and head of the Alberta Public Service in February.
Story continues below advertisement
Blackett said that under the new arrangement, communications staff will continue to report directly to the deputy minister of CPE, just as in any other government department.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Global News
18 minutes ago
- Global News
U.S. justice department to meet with Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell
The U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation will soon meet with Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned sex trafficker and associate of deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Attorney General Pam Bondi has announced. Bondi said Monday that Deputy Attorney Todd Blanche will meet with Maxwell sometime in the 'coming days.' 'President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say,' Blanche said in a statement posted by Bondi on X. Statement from @DAGToddBlanche: This Department of Justice does not shy away from uncomfortable truths, nor from the responsibility to pursue justice wherever the facts may lead. The joint statement by the DOJ and FBI of July 6 remains as accurate today as it was when it was… — Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) July 22, 2025 Story continues below advertisement 'No one is above the law—and no lead is off-limits,' Blanche wrote in a follow-up post on his own X account Tuesday, saying he's contacted Maxwell's lawyers. 'Until now, no administration on behalf of the Department had inquired about her willingness to meet with the government. That changes now.' Justice demands courage. For the first time, the Department of Justice is reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell to ask: what do you know? At @AGPamBondi's direction, I've contacted her counsel. I intend to meet with her soon. No one is above the law—and no lead is off-limits. — Todd Blanche (@DAGToddBlanche) July 22, 2025 On Tuesday, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee agreed to subpoena Maxwell. 'This deposition will help the American people understand how Jeffrey Epstein was able to carry out his evil actions for so long without being brought to justice,' Republican Rep. Tim Burchett said. A lawyer for Maxwell confirmed to The Associated Press that there were discussions with the government. Story continues below advertisement David Oscar Markus, Maxwell's lawyer, said Tuesday in a statement: 'I can confirm that we are in discussions with the government and that Ghislaine will always testify truthfully. We are grateful to President Trump for his commitment to uncovering the truth in this case.' Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Blanche also wrote Tuesday that the joint statement from the Justice Department and FBI on July 6 — which said they had determined there was no Epstein 'client list' and would not release any additional files on Epstein — 'remains as accurate today as it was when it was written.' The overture to lawyers for Maxwell, who in 2022 was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role in helping the financier sexually abuse underage girls, is part of an ongoing Justice Department effort to cast itself as transparent following fierce backlash from parts of President Donald Trump's base over an earlier refusal to release additional records in the Epstein investigation. Story continues below advertisement As part of that effort, the Justice Department, acting at the direction of the Republican president, last week asked a judge to unseal grand jury transcripts from the cases of both Epstein and Maxwell. Some of Trump's most staunch supporters in recent weeks have called on Bondi to resign, after she back-tracked on a promise she made earlier this year that the department would release additional materials, including 'a lot of names' and 'a lot of flight logs,' in connection with Epstein's clients. Legal experts, including one of Epstein's former lawyers, Alan Dershowitz, have said that those transcripts will not likely contain the types of materials being sought by Trump's supporters. A judge could also deny the request. In an interview on Fox News Sunday, Dershowitz called on the Justice Department to release other materials such as FBI reports of interviews with Epstein's victims. Story continues below advertisement He also urged the government to grant Maxwell immunity so that she could potentially testify before Congress about Epstein's crimes. Epstein, who killed himself in his New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial, sexually abused children hundreds of times over more than a decade, exploiting vulnerable girls as young as 14, authorities say. He couldn't have done so without the help of Maxwell, his longtime companion, said prosecutors. Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson, in reference to the Epstein investigation, said 'we should put everything out there and let the people decide.' This week, he's appeared to change his tune, rebuffing pressure from Republican members clamouring for a vote to release the records. According to the New York Times, 'Speaker Mike Johnson said on Monday that he would not hold a House vote this summer on whether the Justice Department should release files related to the accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, retreating from his demand last week that the material must come out.' Johnson, who has relied heavily on Trump to hold onto leadership in the House, cast the president's reticence to release information as out of concern for the victims of Epstein. Story continues below advertisement Johnson decided to end the House's legislative business early this week after he essentially lost control of the powerful House Rules Committee, which sends bills to the floor for debates and votes. Late Monday evening, business on that panel ground to a halt when the Republicans on the House Rules Committee abruptly recessed proceedings rather than risk more proposals from Democrats pushing them to release Epstein files. 'We have a moral responsibility to expose the evil of Epstein and everybody who was involved in that — absolutely — and we're resolved to do it,' Johnson said during his weekly press conference Tuesday morning. 'But we also have an equal moral responsibility to protect the innocent, and that is a fine needle to thread.' Q: Do you support the DOJ seeking an interview with Ghislaine Maxwell? TRUMP: I don't know anything about it. They're gonna what? Q: The deputy AG has reached out to Ghislaine Maxwell TRUMP: It sounds appropriate to do, yeah. I don't really follow that too much. The witch hunt… — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 22, 2025 Story continues below advertisement On Tuesday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he was unaware of Blanche's plan to meet with Maxwell, but said he thought it would be 'appropriate.' 'I don't know about it, but I think it's something that would be, sounds appropriate to do,' Trump said while taking questions before a bilateral meeting with the president of the Philippines. — With files from The Associated Press and Reuters
Global News
18 minutes ago
- Global News
Conservative leader calls for law to block long ballot protests ahead of Alberta byelection
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says the long list of names lining up to flood the ballot in his upcoming federal byelection amounts to a 'blatant abuse' of democracy — and he wants the government to do something about it. More than 100 candidates sponsored by the Longest Ballot Committee are registered to run against Poilievre in a byelection in the Alberta riding of Battle River—Crowfoot set for Aug. 18. The advocacy group also targeted Poilievre's former riding of Carleton in the spring election. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The Conservative leader, who is seeking a path back to the House of Commons, says in a letter to Liberal House leader Steve MacKinnon that the group is confusing voters and undermining democracy by flooding the ballot with unserious candidates. 1:55 Poilievre faces similar 'longest ballot' protest in Battle River-Crowfoot byelection The Conservatives want the Liberals to pass a law when Parliament returns in September that would require a candidate to obtain signatures from 0.5 per cent of the riding's population, not just 100 people. Story continues below advertisement The party also wants each signature to be exclusive to one candidate, and for riding agents to be barred from representing more than one person at a time.
Global News
18 minutes ago
- Global News
U.S. liquor sales have dried up in Canada amid trade war, industry says
The U.S. spirits industry is reporting a big drop in sales in Canada after multiple provinces pulled liquor off shelves and Canadians turned to buying more goods at home in response to the trade war. A joint press release by Spirits Canada and the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States shows that from March 5 until April 30, sales of U.S. spirits in Canada fell by 66.3 per cent compared with the same period last year. Multiple provinces pulled American alcohol off the shelves on March 5 in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and his talk of annexing Canada. From March 5 until the end of April, Canadian spirits sales also declined, but at a lower rate of 6.3 per cent. Other imported spirits declined by 8.2 per cent. The two groups said total spirit sales in Canada dropped 12.3 per cent during the same period. Story continues below advertisement 'The North American spirits sector is highly interconnected, and the immediate and continued removal of all U.S. spirits products from Canadian shelves is deeply problematic for spirits producers on both sides of the border,' said Cal Bricker, president and CEO of Spirits Canada. 'The current disruption demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining open, reciprocal trade relationships that benefit consumers, businesses and government revenues in both nations.' Some American makers criticized the decision by the provinces to pull U.S. liquor off shelves at the time, with Jack Daniel's maker Brown Forman's CEO Lawson Whiting calling the move 'worse than a tariff.' Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I mean, that's worse than a tariff, because it's literally taking your sales away, (and) completely removing our products from the shelves,' he said on a post-earnings call. 1:56 Cautious optimism after inter-provincial alcohol trade announcement According to Spirits Canada and the Distilled Spirits Council, total spirits fell sharply by 20 per cent year over year in March. Story continues below advertisement Canadian spirits sales increased 3.6 per cent in April, with other imported spirits up 3.7 per cent, but the gains didn't compensate for the losses from U.S. removal. Compared with last year, overall spirit sales remained down 3.3 per cent in April, a decline of $13.9 million. Chris Swonger, president and CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council, said in the joint release that U.S. liquor should be back on Canadian shelves and that the move is 'needlessly reducing revenues for the provinces and hurting Canadian consumers and hospitality businesses.' 'Mean and nasty' — or doubling down? Months into the trade war, Canadians seem to show no signs of letting up on avoiding U.S. goods and travel — in fact, numbers have grown. Ipsos polling conducted exclusively for Global News and released in time for Canada Day showed that 72 per cent of Canadians are avoiding U.S.-made goods. Story continues below advertisement The polling also showed that 77 per cent of respondents think less of the U.S. as a country because of Trump's attacks on Canada's economy and sovereignty. Trump's ambassador to Canada told a Washington state audience on Monday that the president sees Canadians as 'mean and nasty' for refusing to travel to the U.S. and pulling American alcohol. 'That's their business — I don't like it, but if that's what they want to do, that's fine. They want to ban American alcohol; that's fine. It doesn't necessarily send real positive signals in terms of their treating us well,' Pete Hoekstra told the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region Foundation. 'There are reasons why the president and some of his team refer to Canada as being mean and nasty to deal with, OK, because of some of those steps.' Hoekstra went on to say he has no problem getting U.S. liquor into Canada, as border officers don't check his vehicle when he crosses the border. British Columbia Premier David Eby, in response to Hoekstra's comments, urged his province's residents to double down on their efforts to buy and travel within Canada.
