April 9, 2003

Province appoints new members to the Alberta Securities Commission

Edmonton... The provincial government announced today the appointments of Dennis Anderson and Mike Shaikh to the Alberta Securities Commission, effective April 1, 2003. The government also announced Thomas Cooke’s re-appointment. All three are effective for three-year terms. A previous order in council (131/2003), dated March 26, 2003, announced the appointment of John Swendsen, who has since withdrawn.

Stephen Murison has also been appointed as member and vice-chair, a full time staff position.

“I am pleased to see such a high caliber of people joining the Commission,” said Greg Melchin, Minister of Revenue and Minister responsible for the Alberta Securities Commission. “This is a dynamic time in securities regulation.  Maintaining strong membership will be important as the Commission continues to promote confidence in Alberta’s capital markets and contributes to an effective national securities regulatory system.”

The Alberta Securities Commission is an industry funded provincial corporation responsible for maintaining the efficiency and integrity of the capital markets through the administration of the Alberta Securities Act, the Securities Regulation and the Alberta Securities Commission Rules. The Securities Commission is an administrative tribunal with quasi-judicial powers. Panels of members hear enforcement proceedings and consider applications for discretionary exemptions from the requirements of securities legislation. The Commission also hears appeals from decisions of the Executive Director, TSX Venture Exchange and the Alberta District Council of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada.

Backgrounder - Biographical Notes

New Appointment - Dennis Anderson
Mr. Anderson retired from a successful accounting career in 1991, where he served as a Managing Partner with the KPMG office in Calgary, and as a member of KPMG’s National Policy Board and Western Region Management Committee. His career has also included a number of positions with firms involved in the energy sector. Most recently, Mr. Anderson served as a public member of the Alberta Insurance Council. Mr. Anderson has devoted countless hours to his community, and has served as Chairman of the Board and President of the Calgary Stampede Foundation.

New Appointment – Mazhar (Mike) Shaikh, CA
Mr. Shaikh has been a Chartered Accountant since 1980. He is an active member of the Calgary business community and has run his own accounting corporation since 1982. He currently sits as a Senator for the University of Calgary and has also taught at the University of Calgary and Mount Royal Community College.

New Appointment – Stephen Murison, Vice-Chair
Mr. Murison first joined the Alberta Securities Commission as legal counsel in 1997. Prior to his employment with the Commission, he was a partner with McCarthy Tétrault, a national law firm based in Calgary, where he specialized in taxation, securities and corporate law.

Re-Appointment - Thomas G. Cooke, Q.C.
Mr. Cooke became a Commission member in April 2000 and is a member of the Audit Committee. Mr. Cooke has almost 25 years of experience in corporate, commercial and administrative law, having been a partner at a number of law firms in Edmonton. In April 2000, he was appointed President of a private land development company conducting business both in Canada and internationally. He is an active member of the Legal Education Society of Alberta.

Alberta Securities Commission Members (As of April 2003)

For media inquiries, please contact:

Cathy Housdorff Director of Communications  Alberta Revenue (780) 427-5364

Joni Delaurier Coordinator, Communications  Alberta Securities Commission (403) 297-4481

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