'It's not a good strategy': Smith, Shandro dodge questions about phone call and ethics investigation

Premier Danielle Smith won't say what she is being investigated for by Alberta's ethics commissioner and Justice Minister Tyler Shandro wouldn't answer questions about how many times the premier's asked anyone within his ministry about ongoing criminal and COVID-19-related cases.

Speaking at an election-style party event the day after her office confirmed she was the subject of an investigation by Alberta's ethics commissioner, Smith says she wants to respect the process and it would be inappropriate to comment.

"The advice that I have been given is that we've got to let the ethics commissioner process play out," Smith said in facing questions about the scope of the investigation and when she was notified about the ethics commissioner's probe.

Smith is facing accusations of interference since a recorded phone call was leaked almost two weeks ago in which she is heard discussing an active criminal case with the accused, Calgary street pastor Artur Pawlowski.

The premier says she does not have the power to intervene, but says she's speaking to justice officials "almost weekly" about such cases. Smith has since said she used imprecise language on the call.

At the conclusion of a ceremony honouring recipients of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal, CTV News attempted to question Shandro about the phone call and whether he thinks it was appropriate.

"I'm not going to detract from today's ceremony," Shandro said in the parking lot following the event. "But if you do have questions about that, happy to take those questions offline, perhaps on another occasion."

Shandro's office did not respond to a formal request for an interview Tuesday.

Justice Minister Tyler Shandro is also tight-lipped about the issue, refusing to answer questions about how many times his office was contacted by the premier.

"This is like a master class on how not to manage an issue," said Marc Henry, a political strategist and pollster with ThinkHQ.

"It goes back farther than, you know, the call with Artur Pawlowski. It goes back to allegations that (Smith's) office was in contact with prosecutors regarding COVID-related offences."

Henry says most voters will have already made up their mind about the allegations that Smith is interfering with the administration of justice, regardless of the recent ethics commissioner investigation into the issue. He finds the lack of clear answers from the premier and her ministers puzzling.

"It's not a good strategy because it the issue moves beyond the issue at hand," Henry said.

"To continually try to avoid answering questions around it... starts to raise issues around the premier's character, issues around honesty and integrity and forthrightness, and that is a big problem."

Facing questions about the investigation, Smith told journalists to ask the ethics commissioner herself.

In an emailed statement, the office of the ethics commissioner declined to answer specific questions.

"We are not able to confirm an investigation because of section 26 of the Conflicts of Interest Act.

"You may wish to look at the NDP request for an investigation, which is a public document," reads the statement.

In a letter to the ethics commissioner on March 31, the NDP's Irfan Sabir accused Smith of breaching the provision of the Conflicts of Interest Act that forbids a legislature member from using their powers to further the private interests of an individual.

With files from the Canadian Press