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EDMONTON — Alberta Premier Rachel Notley has rebuffed calls to fire her human services minister, and instead is accusing the opposition of crass grandstanding in the death of a four-year-old girl.

“(Irfan Sabir) has worked diligently,” Notley told the legislature Monday during question period.

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Notley said the most productive thing for her opponents to do would be to join Sabir’s recently announced all-party panel looking to fix systemic problems with children in government care.

“We have invited members opposite to be part of that committee,” said Notley.

“(But) we are not going to create a platform on which they can score political points like they’re trying to do today.”

While eschewing opposition gamesmanship, Notley made political accusations herself.

She criticized the opposition Tories for failing to address the problems while in power for almost 44 years, for reducing the number of social workers in the 1990s, and for proposing social service budget cuts in their last budget.