Turmel bows out as NDP leader

Plan B for F-35s, labour rights attack, by-election, Robogate controversy continues.

by Samantha Bayard

and Ish Theilheimer, with YouTube Videos

OTTAWA , Straight Goods News, March 19, 2012 — The last week of Nycole Turmel's interim leadership of the NDP was also the last before the House rose for a week's break. Her sendoff was fractious, what with new reports emerging daily on Robogate, the politicized problems at Air Canada, a stealth fighter bailout and more.

Since September, the NDP-led Opposition has been asking the government about the proposed purchase of 65 F-35 stealth fighter jets, demanding details on a reported backup in light of cost overrruns and other problems with the planes. This week, associate defence minister Julian Fantino, who previously had insisted his critics opposed opposed all things "holy and decent," was forced to admit alternative purchase plans are indeed in the works.

For 18 months, NDP MP Matthew Kellway (Beaches—East York) has been criticizing the Conservatives whole hearted support of the F35s. He's been asking that any proposed airplane purchase go out to tender. It seems the Conservatives are finally taking heed of the NDP's warnings.

Kellway says the situation has changed somewhat. Now, Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay answers one question by saying the government is committed to F35s, but then answers another question with a suggestion a project planning team is considering alternatives and they have a Plan B in place.

"It's not satisfying and it's a bit frustrating. I think the minister has an obligation to Canadians to answer some of the questions we have been asking," said Kellway.

Matthew Kellway speaks to reporters about F35s and a so-called Plan B

Inside and outside the House, debate raged over the government intervening in labour disputes at Air Canada (and carried late into Tuesday night on March 13 in the House). Labour Minister Lisa Raitt found a new way to legislate worker back to work. She referred a dispute with pilots and machinists to the Canada Industrial Relations Board, to rule on whether air travel is an essential service. Effectively, this means the dispute will be turned over to arbitration.

On Wednesday, workers expressed their outrage by staging a rally outside Parliament. Marcel St-Jean, President of the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local 1751 Montreal, told the rally it is impossible to get the same quality of agreement from an arbitrator as at a traditional bargaining table. "With an arbitrator," he said, "the two parts are unequal."

St-Jean explained that Air Canada employees have been making concessions for the last 10 years. He suggested that although the general public feels that all Air Canada employees have high wages, some of the employees who handle baggage are making as little as $12.50 an hour and the work they do is essential to the safety and balance of the planes. "All employees at Air Canada are important," said St-Jean.

"The message that they send to business is: you do what you want. If you want to go and break collective agreements, take concessions, take their pensions away, we will be there to legislate them people back to work," NDP labour critic Yvon Godin (Acadie-Bathurst) told workers at the rally. "This is not the country that we want to live in. We want people to have good benefits, have pension plans, and be able to share our wealth, they are stopping this."

NDP labour critic Yvon Godin and Liberal transport critic Denis Coderre address Air Canada workers.

Liberal transport critic (Bourassa) Denis Coderre told the workers "I truly believe that we don't have a Minister of Labour in this country any more. The right to bargain is a part of our democracy, to see the way they put up that back to work legislation was totally disgusting."

Meanwhile, tempers were retting testy as the NDP prepared to elect a new leader. Former NDP leader Ed Broadbent was accused by others within the party of going too far in a series of media interviews in which he harshly criticized Thomas Mulcair. The ever-colourful NDP MP Charlie Angus, (Timmins-James Bay), who is active in Paul Dewar's leadership bid, says he was not bothered by Broadbent's remarks and feels the campaign has been a credit to his party.

"I have a lot of respect for the candidates," said Angus. "Some potential future leaders called me a middle-aged white guy. If that's as bad as it's going to get, I can live with it. This has been a pretty good race, a pretty respectful race and I think Ed Broadbent's appearance doesn't change anything in terms of the respect people are going to have for Thomas Mulcair in parts of this country."

Charlie Angus talks about the NDP leadership race

With the NDP poised to pick a new leader on March 24, it was interim NDP Leader Nycole Turmel's last week on the job. She received parting jabs from the Conservatives over flyers she is distributing to her riding constituents about tax credits. Stephen Harper teased her in the House about this, saying "I see that the leader of the NDP, in her most recent parliamentary bulletin to her constituents, actually praised a whole range of Conservative measures, all of the measures that she and her party actually voted against."

"At least we keep our constituents informed," she shot back. "On voter fraud, the Conservatives have avoided taking any responsibility."

Later, to reporters, Turmel looked back on the past eight months as interim leader and expressed some frustration about how many of her questions weren't answered directly.

"Before I walked in, there was a bit of emotion but when you get into the Question Period you want answers, you want this government to answer our questions," said Turmel. "He never answered our questions. He never did, over the last eight months."

Nycole Turmel

On Tuesday, the Toronto-Danforth riding saw a by-election to fill Jack Layton's seat. Layton's widow, MP Olivia Chow (Trinity-Spadina) went door-to-door in support of NDP candidate and human rights lawyer Craig Scott, who eventually emerged victorious.

"I believe the folks in Toronto-Danforth want to elect a voice and a member of Parliament that reflects the values that both Jack Layton and the New Democratic Party of Canada stand for, which is one of equality and a caring society," said Chow. "They also want someone who can understand their needs. Craig Scott has been living in the riding for 22 years [as] a small business person, well known human rights lawyer and an excellent professor. So he has lots of depth, a lot of intellect and knowledge — so he'll fit really well."

Olivia Chow speaks in support of by-election candidate Craig Scott

The House doesn't sit again until March 26. By then, the NDP will have chosen a new permanent leader and Craig Scott will sit as an MP.

eMail: Samantha@straightgoods.com 

© Copyright 2012 Ish Theilheimer and Samantha Bayard, All rights Reserved. Written For: StraightGoods.ca