Liberal leader rejects Green MLA's fraud allegation in 2022 leadership race
Susan Holt says she has seen no evidence that nursing home residents became party members against their will
The leader of New Brunswick's Liberal Party says she's seen no evidence to support a claim that residents of two nursing homes were signed up to vote in the 2022 party leadership race without their knowledge or against their will.
That's the allegation made by Green MLA Kevin Arseneau, who says he has evidence that he filed last week as part of a complaint with the province's seniors' advocate.
But Susan Holt told reporters that supporters of one of her leadership rivals did sign up residents of the two Bathurst-area homes, she is not aware that any were registered unknowingly.
"No, I don't know of any," she said.
Minutes after her comments, Holt approached Arseneau in the rotunda of the legislature asking him to supply her with the evidence he says he has.
He refused, saying he got his information from conversations with residents and suggested Holt go speak to them herself.
2 homes owned by same person
Arseneau said last week that his own grandmother, who has dementia, is a resident of one of the two homes.
The Green MLA said in the legislature last week that 28 out of 30 residents of one Bathurst-area nursing home had been signed up as Liberals, as were 25 out of 30 residents of a second home belonging to the same owner.
A letter from the Liberal Party to Arseneau demands that membership lists be returned. (Jacques Poitras/CBC News)
He called it "a suspected case of fraud and abuse."
The two homes are both known as Chez Annie. One is in Bathurst and one is in nearby Robertville.
Arseneau said he asked the advocate to investigate what happened and accused the Liberals of having known about the issue since 2022 without acting on it.
The co-owner of the two nursing homes, Steven Sisk, told CBC News that he was approached by a supporter of leadership candidate Donald Arseneault to invite residents to join the party to vote for its new leader.
"I checked if there was any interest in taking part in that on the part of residents, and by popular demand, yes, I guess they were very interested," Sisk said.
"Everyone who was enrolled consented to it."
He also said most of the residents were very interested in politics, made their own decisions on who to vote for and were not pressured to support a particular candidate.
"They knew who they wanted to vote for anyways," he said. "You can't force nobody into nothing."
MLA's grandmother signed up
Sisk said not all of the 53 residents who signed up ended up voting, particularly residents with dementia or Alzheimer's.
"The ones who could not, did not."
He added that he didn't know if Kevin Arseneau's grandmother voted but said she consented to being signed up.
On Wednesday the Liberals sent an official notice to the Green MLA demanding he return "personal and confidential information regarding its members."
Arseneau accused the Liberal Party of signing up members from a nursing home, some without their knowledge or consent. (Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick)
Possessing the information was "unauthorized, unethical and lawful," Liberal Party president Carley Parish wrote.
Arseneau confirmed he obtained an 11-page list of all Liberal Party members in the two ridings where the nursing homes are located.
He said the Liberal notice was an attempt to "change the narrative," and he would "absolutely not" return the membership lists because it constitutes evidence supporting his complaint.
Holt said the party became aware from media organizations that Arseneau had the information, though no news organizations had referred to the list or published any of the names, addresses or other information on it at the time she made the assertion.
Arseneau said while he showed the documents to some journalists, he knew they would not publish any of the personal information.
"I have not released that information publicly. I have used it in a very responsible way, so that we could address a very real and severe and sinister problem."
Donald Arseneault, who placed fourth in the 2022 leadership race, said by text Wednesday that he rejected the suggestion his volunteers would sign up seniors without their consent.
"I have no reason to doubt that they didn't do anything wrongfully," he said.
"To make these allegations is quite unfortunate. Seniors have the right to vote."
Bathurst West-Beresford MLA Rene Legacy, who supported Arseneault for leader, challenged Kevin Arseneau to present his evidence publicly that some residents were registered without their consent.
"The MLA who brought it up is going to have to bring up the proof. I'm not going to go into a campaign of dirtying the Liberal name until I have the proof."
Holt said Wednesday that she canvassed her caucus and none of her current MLAs, including Arseneault's supporters, signed up residents of the nursing homes.
She also said the party has made it clear that volunteers must ensure "that people in positions of influence aren't unduly influencing people to do something that's not of their free will. It's something we take really seriously."
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"Trudeau did not say if he would campaign with Liberal Leader Susan Holt in the run-up to the New Brunswick election."
Trudeau rejected this, saying Thursday that the price on pollution helps Canadians."
Does anyone recall the fun Rebel News had with the Liberal Party president Carley Parish when she sent them a nasty letter on behalf of the RCMP?
Higgs must be ready to announce the election. The emails are out to request lawn signs and the promo ad for vote Blaine Higgs is done, and the baby blue bus must be getting the final touches. In the new ad Higgs is touring the province on his Honda gold wing motorcycle. Don’t blink you may miss him!
Don Corey
I passed on the lawn signs request; never did go for that one, and it would be a wasted effort anyway in my neck of the woods.
Le Wier
I find the lawn signs to be outdated, and I don’t provide free advertising for anybody. I don’t even like to wear clothing with logos.
Samual Johnston
Well after this huge endorsement from Justin he would be wise to call it. Even Holt is wishing JT would just mind his own business she wants nothing to do with him.
Don Corey
I agree.
sigh
Like most people in Ontario, I was overjoyed to be rid of McGuinty/Wynne
But then came Ford who has managed to out do everything those previous two did, in a shorter space of time - even after counting for inflation
I'd be shocked if they got any other result.
Albert Einstein
CBC News · Posted: Oct 17, 2015 6:00 AM ADT
"On Wednesday the Liberals sent an official notice to the Green MLA demanding he return'personal and confidential information regarding its members'.
Possessing the information was 'unauthorized, unethical and lawful,' Liberal Party president Carley Parish wrote."
I give this revelation three and a half Meh's
Stop impersonating, and completely misrepresenting, Kyle.
Not cool at all.
His SANB buddies.
https://onfr.tfo.org/kevin-arseneau-de-la-sanb-a-lassemblee/Tune into the 52 minute mark if you want a good chuckle
Trudeau blasts N.B. premier over gender-identity policy, abortion access
Prime minister says Premier Blaine Higgs risks making vulnerable kids even more vulnerable
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took aim at New Brunswick's controversial gender-identity policy on Thursday, accusing Premier Blame Higgs of putting politics before the interests of vulnerable schoolchildren.
During a visit to Caraquet, Trudeau was asked about a provincial policy that now requires parental consent before school staff can use certain students' chosen names and pronouns.
"I trust parents, I trust schools," Trudeau said. "And I don't think we should be trying to score political points off of kids who are incredibly vulnerable, who shouldn't be targeted by political parties wanting to get elected or to get re-elected."
The revised Policy 713 has stirred up anger among students, teachers and parents on all sides of the issue and pitted some school districts against the government. It's currently being challenged in court.
Trudeau said his concern is that "we're not further vulnerablizing our most vulnerable kids."
Policy 713 requires school staff to get the consent of parents if a student under 16 wants to adopt a new name or pronoun. (Radio-Canada)
He also said he stands against the Higgs government "for not respecting women's rights to choose."
In January, a medical clinic in Fredericton called Clinic 554 closed because the province wouldn't allow abortion services to be covered by Medicare.
Medical
director Dr. Adrian Edgar announced in January that Clinic 554 was
closing because the province would not cover abortions under Medicare. (Aidan Cox/CBC)
Surgical abortions are now only paid for by Medicare at the two hospitals in Moncton and at Chaleur Hospital in Bathurst. No other hospital in New Brunswick offers the service.
"The shutting down of health and reproductive services offered by Clinic 554, the unwillingness to engage in allowing women to actually choose what happens to their future and their bodies is a disgrace," Trudeau said.
He went on to compare the fight for abortion access with what's happening in the United States, which saw Roe vs. Wade, a Supreme Court opinion that protected abortion access, overturned in January.
"So we know it's not that Roe vs. Wade couldn't happen in Canada, it's that it's more likely to happen in Canada, particularly with Conservative leaders who continue to not stand up for women's rights."
Ottawa's new national pharmacare plan will cover prescription contraceptives, which Trudeau touted in his remarks about abortion access in New Brunswick.
"Because it's not right that women have to pay upfront to be able to have the choice to start a family or not, that's why IUDs, the pill, all those things will be available for free to women as we move forward on pharmacare for prescription contraceptives."
CBC is asking the Premier's Office for comment.
But Higgs has previously defended his revision of Policy 713 as a way to protect parental rights to know what is going on with their children at school.
As for abortion access outside a hospital "a slippy slope" toward allowing more services in private clinics, and having just three hospitals offering the procedure is "certainly providing the access that's required."
PM disagrees with N.B. Liberal leader on carbon tax
Trudeau did not answer when asked if he would join Liberal Leader Susan Holt during the campaign leading up to the provincial election, scheduled for October.
Trudeau did not say if he would campaign with Liberal Leader Susan Holt in the run-up to the New Brunswick election. (Sam Farley/CBC News)
In March, Holt called for putting off the carbon tax for one year because New Brunswickers were struggling enough with rising costs.
Trudeau rejected this, saying Thursday that the price on pollution helps Canadians.
"At a time when Canadians right across the country, including here in New Brunswick, are challenged with a high cost of living, is not the time to take money out of their pockets," Trudeau said, adding that eight out of 10 families in Canada actually make money under the plan.
"The reality is, more money in families' pockets while we fight climate change is something that everyone needs to be getting behind, and indeed fighting for, and that's what I'm going to continue to do."
Trudeau's comments on Higgs and Holt were made during a stop in northeast New Brunswick to discuss the National School Food Program, which was announced in early April.
The goal of the $1 billion program is to deliver meals to 400,000 students annually by the 2024-2025 school year.
"I know that making sure kids are well-fed is a priority across the country and right here in New Brunswick," Trudeau said.
"Because we know that when kids eat well, they do better in school. When they do better in school, they do better in life, and that's what we need for everyone in this country."
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