Mandate letter: Minister of Tourism and Sport

July 14, 2023

The Honourable Joseph Schow Minister of Tourism and Sport

Dear Minister:

I want to thank you for your service to this government and congratulate you on your new role as Minister of Tourism and Sport.

Our Cabinet is made up of talented, diverse, and experienced leaders and I am proud to share with you our responsibility to fulfill the mandate given to us by Albertans. We all love this beautiful province and want the best for our families and our future. Over the next four years, we will take clear and decisive action to grow and diversify our economy while ensuring our health, education and other core social programs are world class.

I have full confidence that our team will build on our solid foundation of stability, informed decision-making, and good governance to improve the lives of Albertans and help our province realize its potential.

Under your leadership as Minister of Tourism and Sport, I expect you to work closely with your Cabinet and Caucus colleagues and the public service through the committee, Cabinet and legislative processes to deliver on our platform commitments to support Albertans, including:

• Establishing a Community Recreation Centre Infrastructure Fund that invests at least $80 million over four years in small and mid-sized projects such as indoor and outdoor hockey arenas and rinks, community pools, indoor turf centres, pickle ball courts, sports fields and courts, and other recreational facilities.
• Investing at least $10 million over five years to improve air access options for visitors from high-value markets.

In addition, I expect you to support the growth of tourism and sport in our province through the following initiatives:

• Developing an international games bidding policy and legislation (if necessary) to ensure future international gaming bids using substantial provincial taxpayer dollars are subject to transparent public disclosure requirements and cost/benefit analysis and include mandatory referenda for affected communities when appropriate.
• Supporting the Minister of Immigration and Multiculturalism, who is the lead, in establishing a dedicated tourism and hospitality immigration stream in Alberta.
• Assessing the advantages and disadvantages of having all of Alberta’s tourism levy invested in tourism-related growth initiatives and making recommendations based on the findings.
• Continuing to develop and implement a long-term provincial tourism strategy.
• Working with the Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade, assist in designing a ministry-specific job-attraction strategy to raise the awareness of young Albertans (aged 16 to 24), and adults changing careers, of the skilled trades and professions available in each economic sector, including pathways for education, apprenticeship, and training.

I direct you to work closely with the public service, including your Deputy Minister and other senior officials in your ministry, to support the priorities outlined in this letter with the highest standard of professionalism, integrity, and creativity.

I also expect you to regularly and proactively reach out to all ministry-related stakeholders in order to take feedback and identify potential solutions on issues of importance to them, including finding ways our government can reduce burdensome and unnecessary red tape and barriers that are hurting their members’ ability to grow the economy and improve quality of life for the Albertans they serve.

Together with you and our Caucus and Cabinet colleagues, I look forward to serving all Albertans to ensure our province remains one of the best places on earth to live, work and raise a family.

Sincerely,

Danielle Smith
Premier of Alberta