Kenney’s political foray into India sparks confusion, fury

Opposition Leader Jason Kenney and his United Conservative Party colleagues say they are advancing Alberta and Canadian interests on a visit to India. But the NDP calls the trip ‘disruptive,’ and suggests he is giving a false impression of his authority.

EDMONTON Alberta Transportation Minister Brian Mason has labelled a trip to India by United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney “very questionable.”

Mason’s major problem is the clash between who’s paying for the trip and how it’s being represented.

He has some experience travelling as an opposition leader, having gone to Alaska almost a decade ago to research the state’s oil royalties program. At the time, he sat down with then-governor Sarah Palin, state representatives and staffers.

That kind of international travel funded by a caucus budget must be cleared in advance with the Speaker’s office. The Speaker’s office won’t say whether that happened for Kenney ’s overseas jaunt with his UCP MLA colleagues Devin Dreeshen and Prasad Panda, though the UCP says all expenses will be covered by the MLAs and the party.

For Mason, therein lies the problem.

“(Kenney is) either there on an approved trip as the leader of the official Opposition, in which case he’s not entitled to take outside money to be funded by partisan donations, or he’s going there as a private individual and not doing government business. But he can’t have it both ways,” Mason said.

United Conservative caucus spokesperson Christine Myatt called Mason’s comments a “classless smear job” and said parties have every right to choose how to spend their cash. Elections Alberta rules say party operating expenses outside of elections or campaigns aren’t restricted by legislation, but must be reported as part of annual financial filings.

Myatt said Alberta’s ethics commissioner was consulted before the UCP group left to ensure compliance with certain aspects of the trip, such as flying to a petrochemical refinery on a company plane.

Kenney has met with oil executives and scores of government officials during his trip, and has appeared in various media trumpeting Alberta’s energy market, including the province’s “low taxes ... (and) efficient power prices.”

Myatt said Kenney is happy to forward Alberta and Canada’s interests while in India, adding he was invited to the country by the High Commission of India.

Trade Minister Deron Bilous is more concerned with how the roles of Kenney, Dreeshen and Panda may be interpreted abroad.

That was highlighted Monday when a federal minister in India, Nitin Gadkari, tweeted a photo of him shaking hands with Kenney whom he called an “Hon’ble Minister” from Alberta.

Myatt said that was simply a misunderstanding and Kenney didn’t go into the meeting representing himself as a minister.

However, Bilous said Tuesday it underlines how easily confusion can occur. He plans to follow up with Alberta’s trade representative in India to make sure everyone’s on the same page.

“When a non-government MLA goes over it can be confusing to foreign governments, just the same as opposition members from other countries coming to Canada,” he said.

“There is real concern that there could be misrepresentation or he could misspeak or there could be misunderstandings, as we saw in that tweet.”