Sask. auditor to investigate hotel expenses for Social Services recipients

Saskatchewan’s auditor is going to investigate how the provincial government picks and pays for hotel stays, in the wake of revelations about a Saskatchewan Party MLA’s motel.

On Thursday, Tara Clemett’s office said the auditor will investigate the province’s procurement and payment practices around hotels. Those facilities often are used in emergencies when a person has nowhere else to go.

This comes after an uproar over government-paid hotel stays at a Regina motel owned by Sask. Party MLA Gary Grewal. The Saskatchewan NDP made public documents that show the motel raised prices when Social Services began footing the room bill, and later government said the Sunrise Motel had been paid $172,000 last year for hotel stays.

Last week, the NDP had put forward a motion in the assembly to ask the provincial auditor to look into the situation, but it was voted down by the government members. The auditor is still able to investigate the situation of her own volition.

According to Social Services Minister Gene Makowsky, Grewal plans to meet with the conflict of interest commissioner over the accusations.

Grewal hasn’t been at proceedings at the Legislature since the allegations were made earlier this month. At the time, the government said he was mourning a death in the family.

— With files from The Canadian Press