Representing the organization, Melody Littell provided an in-depth overview of the services they offer to victims of crime and tragedy across eastern Alberta, including the Cold Lake area, and fielded questions from council members about eligibility, coverage, and how community members can access support.  “As part of our work with Victim Services, in partnership with […]

A judge has granted Alberta’s government its request to question the former head of the provincial health authority about confidential emails she is accused of keeping and sharing without permission, including to media. The government’s request was made last month when it filed for an injunction in the high-profile lawsuit launched by Athana Mentzelopoulos, the […]

Artificial intelligence has continued to grow as a popular technological tool to streamline and make processes more efficient, but as use has grown so, too, have concerns about potential transparency and ethical uses.  During the regular Tuesday, March 4 Wheatland County council meeting, council approved the establishment of a new policy regarding the responsible and […]

Alberta’s health authority is claiming its fired former executive breached her employment agreement by holding on to confidential emails with information pertaining to allegations in a high-profile court case. A new affidavit filed Wednesday by Alberta Health Services says the agency is looking to amend its statement of defence in light of the emails, which […]

Alberta’s government is proposing a law it says would ban federal employees from going on any oil-related sites — from wellheads to corporate head offices – but the NDP says it’s an illegal and performative distraction. Premier Danielle Smith says the goal is to keep federal staffers away from any place where oil and gas […]

One of the largest for-profit continuing care home operators in Alberta received more than $8.85 million in wage subsidies from the provincial government while the company also paid out tens of millions to shareholders. Between 2020 and 2023, Alberta Health transferred over $8.85 million in subsidies to Extendicare as part of a $2 per hour […]

School divisions in central Alberta are coping with a huge headache related to cybercrime: what appears to be a massive ransomeware attack against computer company PowerSchool that’s affected students and teachers across North America. PowerSchool notified hundreds of schools and school divisions across North America Jan. 7 that it’s cloud-based storage system had been hacked; […]

The size, number, and environmental impact of oilsands tailings spills have been significantly underreported, according to new research. A study published in the Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Assessment compares information on reported bitumen tailings spills from the Alberta Energy Regulator’s (AER) public database with documents from the AER released through freedom of information requests. […]

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says the province has heard back from Canada’s chief actuary on its bid to leave the Canada Pension Plan but says there’s no estimate on how much the province should get. The province has been waiting for months for the review and a figure. Smith said Thursday her government will follow […]

Thousands of patients and health care workers were infected during COVID-19 outbreaks in acute care facilities in Alberta in the last year, raising questions about why more isn’t being done to prevent in-hospital transmission. Between Sept. 1, 2023, and Aug. 31, 2024, more than 300 COVID-19 outbreaks were declared at Alberta Health Services and Covenant […]

Alberta’s information and privacy commissioner says she is worried — but not surprised — the province voted this week to pass legislation she says will reduce public access to government information. “I am concerned,” commissioner Diane McLeod said in an interview. “All of those things I think are going to impact the right of access […]

An Alberta government bill proposing changes to freedom of information rules has passed third and final reading in the legislature despite the province’s information and privacy watchdog warning they will “significantly degrade” transparency. The bill, now awaiting royal assent, creates a number of new exemptions for what documents can be provided to members of the […]