EDMONTON – The husband of a former Alberta premier is questioning why Premier Danielle Smith is inviting her husband to sit in on government meetings.
Lou Arab is married to former premier Rachel Notley and has long been a senior leader with the Canadian Union of Public Employees.
In a social media post, Arab takes issue with Smith’s recent comments saying there is nothing wrong with her husband David Moretta sitting in on meetings discussing government rail projects.
Smith says Moretta covered rail issues as a former journalist and as her husband can advise her on anything she sees fit.
But Arab says when Notley was premier he was not allowed anywhere near labour policy, was not free to lobby any cabinet minister, and says Smith is, in his words, “full of it” when she claims having Moretta in such meetings is acceptable conduct.
The CBC reported this week that Moretta was invited in 2023 to three government meetings about a proposed passenger train project and future provincial rail plans.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 15, 2025.
