Ousted Conservative MP Joining Liberals
Posted February 6, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
And while that didn’t sit well with the Conservatives, it may be just what the doctor ordered for the recently ousted Liberals.
Garth Turner, whose comments on the way the Tories were handling the environment created waves before that party turned a shade of green, officially joined Stephane Dion and the Grits Tuesday.
The Halton MP has been sitting as an independent since he was turfed from caucus last fall.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper laid down strict rules for his members to follow and when Turner posted details of closed door meetings on his weblog, he was demoted.
He also opposed reopening the same sex marriage debate and came out in favour of tougher gun laws, issues that didn’t jibe with Harper and the Tories’ political bent.
After that, he quit the party to sit as what he often seemed – a lone voice in Ottawa. He briefly flirted with becoming a member of the Green Party, because of his strong interest in environmental issues.
But it’s clear he’ll have more influence with the Liberals behind him and you can expect that lone voice to get a lot louder in the coming months.
“I’ve been a Progressive Conservative my entire life, and I believe the voters sent me here to pursue an agenda of being fiscally conservative and socially progressive,” he remarks.
“Today, the Liberal party is as close to my P.C. roots as I’m going to get.”
Turner’s new direction will likely give his colleagues a lot to play with. It was the then-Tory MP who railed against his own leader’s decision to get Grit David Emerson to switch parties after the last election.
He argued any politician who switches affiliations in mid-mandate should be forced to stand for a by-election in his riding.
You can expect his new foes will insist he put his political money where his outspoken mouth is.
The change shifts the number of seats in the House of Commons one more time. Here’s the new count:
Conservatives: 125
Liberals 101
Bloc: 51
NDP: 29
Independent: 1
Vacancy: 1
To see Turner’s weblog, click here.
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