Following the revelation that an Alberta minister traveled to Hawaii in late December, Conservative Prime Minister Jason Kenney issued a directive on Friday banning MPs and senior officials from leisure travel.
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Municipal Affairs Minister Tracy Allard, who had already contracted COVID-19 in October, will however remain in office, despite calls for her resignation from the opposition.
Jason Kenney took some of the blame for the story on Friday, saying he could have issued a clearer overseas travel directive to political staff and members of his government. The Prime Minister confirmed to Radio-Canada that other of his colleagues took advantage of the holidays to travel south.
“I take full responsibility for not having communicated a clear directive to members of my government,” Jason Kenney said at a press conference.
Minister Tracy Allard reportedly left the country on December 19, and returned Wednesday at the request of her leader.
“I foresee better days in 2021. It has been a difficult year that will go down in history. Over the challenges of 2020, our resilience, our generosity and our ability to give back shone, ”Minister Allard said in a tweet dated December 24, while in Hawaii.
Alberta has one of the worst records in the country in terms of COVID-19 infections, and Albertans are currently under strict health measures similar to those in Quebec.
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