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“During an election campaign, political parties are not permitted to use AHS facilities as a backdrop or host location for any campaign event or activity.”

While the Alberta election looms this spring, an election has not yet been called.

Notley’s spokeswoman, Cheryl Oates, said in a statement that “not a single tax dollar went to this announcement.”

“The nurses who came to speak out about the dangers of Jason Kenney’s plan to privatize health care, came on their own time because this issue is important to them,” Oates said.

“We were not aware of the 2012 AHS memo outlining their policy on events like this. We understand the concern and will ensure future partisan events are not done at AHS facilities.”

Oates further noted on Twitter that “the event was done in a public area of the hospital.”

UCP House Leader Jason Nixon called use of the hospital “an unethical abuse of public resources.”

“Saturday’s NDP campaign event was not just a clear violation of AHS policy, but it also seems probable that the premier and her staff broke Government of Alberta rules that prohibit them from using their influence to host a partisan event in a public hospital,” Nixon said.

“I have written to Alberta’s ethics commissioner to ask for an immediate investigation into this event and I’m calling on Alberta Health Services and the premier’s office to explain this clear violation of AHS policy for the benefit of the Notley NDP.”

During the event, Notley spoke out against Kenney’s comments earlier in the week about allowing some private companies to carry out publicly funded health-care procedures, according to the CBC.