Alberta's D.C. rep quits his other job

Murray Smith has quit one of his jobs. Smith was Alberta's former energy minister and is now the province's representative in Washington, D.C.

As of two weeks ago, he was also a member of the board of directors of Tusk Energy Corp., a junior oil and gas company based in Calgary.

Alberta's International and Intergovernmental Relations Minister Ed Stelmach told Smith that he couldn't do both jobs and that he had until last Friday to choose which one to keep.

On Monday, the province issued a brief statement from Smith stating he had resigned from Tusk Energy.

"I look forward to continuing to represent the province of Alberta in Washington, D.C.," Smith said in the statement.

Stelmach said the matter is closed. "It's an administrative matter, a personnel matter, but it has been dealt with properly according to our guidelines established both by the ethics commissioner and by our department," he said.

Government critics said the matter isn't over. They are calling on Smith to quit as Alberta representative to Washington.

Liberal energy critic Hugh MacDonald said Smith seemed to have ignored the advice of Stelmach and the province's ethics commissioner by accepting the appointment in the first place.

As Alberta's representative, Smith is making more than double his old salary as energy minister. He is being paid $223,000 Cdn in base salary and benefits, a tax-free international service allowance of $21,608, a car, accommodation and other perks.