The government of Alberta is considering installing former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen J. Harper as board chair of the C$168.9 billion ($124.5 billion) Alberta Investment Management Corp., Edmonton, after firing its entire board and CEO on Nov. 7, citing underperformance issues and rising costs at the pension fund.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's government said in a Nov. 7 release that a new board chair would be appointed within 30 days and that a new board will be established after the permanent chair is named. In the interim, Nate Horner, Alberta’s president of treasury board and minister of finance, has been appointed the sole director and chair for AIMCo, while Ray Gilmour, the province’s deputy minister and secretary to cabinet, was named interim CEO.
Ashley Stevenson, press secretary for Alberta’s Ministry of Treasury Board and Finance, said in an emailed statement: “Alberta’s government will be announcing the new chair of AIMCo within the next couple weeks,” declining to speculate on Harper’s candidacy.
Sebastien Betermier, associate professor of finance at McGill University, Montreal, and the executive director of the International Centre for Pension Management, said “the key question is whether the fund (AIMCo) will be able to continue operating at an arm’s length from the government, or whether the government will now start influencing the fund’s investment decisions and in particular the propensity of the fund to invest its assets in Albertan projects.”
An Alberta resident, Harper now serves as chairman and CEO of Harper & Associates, a global consulting and strategic advisory business; he could not be immediately reached for comment. According to his biography on the firm’s website, Harper is also chairman and co-founder of Vision One, a value-oriented investment fund based in Miami, Fla. Harper, who co-founded the Conservative Party of Canada in 2004, served as the country’s Prime Minister from 2006 to 2015, winning three consecutive national elections. His biography describes Harper as “a strong advocate for free trade and open markets.”
Meanwhile, the ousted CEO of AIMCo, Evan Siddall described himself as being on a “career break” and in a “career transition” on his LinkedIn page. He further commented that he is “tying up loose ends, smelling wildflowers, reading, writing, playing guitar (badly), restoring my health and focusing on Sonia, our family and friends.” Sonia refers to Siddall’s wife Sonia Verma, a Canadian journalist, according to his Instagram account. AIMCo could not be reached for comment.
