Former Higgs cabinet minister endorses Liberal candidate to take his seat
Gary Crossman endorses John Herron after resigning early from MLA post in Hampton-Fundy-St. Martins
An outgoing cabinet minister and MLA representing a Progressive Conservative stronghold has endorsed a Liberal candidate to replace him in the next provincial election.
Gary Crossman, who resigned in April ahead of a planned retirement from provincial politics this fall, issued his endorsement of former Progressive Conservative MP John Herron on Thursday evening.
That endorsement comes despite Herron running under the Liberal banner.
"I have always supported the person who I feel best represents our riding. With his wealth of professional experience as a two-term Member of Parliament, lawmaker and his business development, I believe John is the best candidate to represent our riding over the next four years," Crossman said in a Facebook post.
Liberal candidate John Herron said earlier this year he wants to bring dissatisfied longtime Progressive Conservatives on board. (Sam Farley/CBC News)
"I will be voting for John Herron in the election this fall and encourage others to do the same."
Herron, who has been vocal about his aim to bring centrist Tories on board, said the endorsement means a lot for his campaign.
"I think it's a very palpable illustration about how broad, albeit unlikely, our coalition actually is," he said in an interview.
"It's indicative of the level of support that we're receiving.... We haven't won this riding in nearly 30 years, but it would take a … broad-centrist coalition in order to do so. And we've essentially built that."
Hampton, part of the newly named Hampton-Fundy-St. Martins riding, has been a Progressive Conservative stronghold for decades. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
Faytene Grasseschi, the Progressive Conservative candidate for the riding, said in a statement that it's "unfortunate" to see Crossman align himself with Herron and New Brunswick Liberal Leader Susan Holt.
"I am disappointed that Mr. Crossman would not accept any of my invitations to meet with him since I announced I would be seeking the nomination," Grasseschi said on Saturday.
"I know his feelings were hurt because his chosen successor didn't win the nomination, and because I was working so hard in the riding, but I remain open to meeting with him in the future. For now, I will be focusing on the people by connecting with voters in the riding."
Progressive Conservative candidate Faytene Grasseschi called Crossman's endorsement of a Liberal "unfortunate." (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Grasseschi, a long-time Christian conservative activist, has drawn criticism from another contender in the riding, Green party candidate Laura Myers, for statements about same-sex marriage in her 2009 book Marked.
Before Grasseschi was named to the Progressive Conservative candidacy, Crossman had expressed support instead for Jeremy Salgado, Hampton's deputy mayor.
The provincial Progressive Conservatives took note of Crossman's endorsement, and posted an advertisement shortly after to criticize him for taking "a vacation with his pension" and calling the former minister a "sore loser."
Crossman did not return a request for comment on the weekend.
Herron called the ad "ill-mannered," and a sign that the Progressive Conservatives are worried about the Liberals taking the riding.
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Allain suggests link between premier, delayed municipal fiscal reform
Some local governments in need of bridge funding: municipal group
Former
local government minister Daniel Allain says the municipal fiscal
reform file had moved to the 'wayside' by the time he left cabinet in
mid-2023. BRUNSWICK NEWS ARCHIVES Former cabinet minister Daniel Allain is suggesting there’s a link between the delay of further municipal fiscal reform and Premier Blaine Higgs, but the Moncton East Tory MLA won’t say exactly what that link is that has affected the file.
Allain, who was fired as local government minister by Higgs in June 2023, says his department was initially on track to hit a Jan. 1, 2025, deadline to provide more revenue sources for cash-strapped municipalities.
By the time he left cabinet in mid-2023, however, Allain says the municipal fiscal reform file had been moved to the “wayside.”
“Any time that we had momentum we lost it a little bit – that’s unfortunate,” he said in an interview Friday.
“However, I think we can get it back on the rails as fast as we can, and by seeing the two associations (agreeing to municipal fiscal reform priorities) in unison with one voice, I think it’ll definitely help move things forward.”
When asked why momentum was lost, Allain said, “You’ll have to ask the premier on that one,” and wouldn’t elaborate further about what he meant, calling it a “debate” to be had after the upcoming provincial election.
Allain has already announced he won’t reoffer in the election that must occur no later than Oct. 21. He was booted from cabinet last year after he and five other Tory MLAs voted in support of a Liberal motion on Policy 713, which deals with gender identity in the public school system.
Brunswick News requested comment Friday from Higgs about Allain’s statements. Higgs declined comment through his office.
New Brunswick municipalities are now preparing for another year without those promised fiscal changes. Both the anglophone and francophone municipal associations say they’ve been told by the government that additional financial reforms will be implemented by Jan. 1, 2026.
In a statement Friday, new Local Government Minister Glen Savoie said it had “always been the plan” for the changes “to be in effect for the 2026 budget year” once they were implemented in 2025.
But in an interview, Allain said his intention, through the municipal reform white paper he released in 2021, was to have additional fiscal reform changes implemented by Jan. 1, 2025.
In November 2021, the Higgs government pledged that a second phase of fiscal reform to support cash-strapped municipalities would be brought forward by the start of 2025.
Among those changes could include an overhaul of the property tax system, the splitting of provincial cannabis sale proceeds and the handing over of traffic fine revenue to municipalities.
More revenue sources were deemed critical by the Higgs government to support its reorganization of New Brunswick municipalities in the first phase of reform back in 2023.
That same year, the Higgs government implemented the first phase of fiscal reforms – adding a heavy industrial tax class and giving municipalities more flexibility when setting their tax rates – but the province has yet to take any additional steps.
Some local municipalities in need of bridge funding
Some francophone local governments will need financial support to bridge themselves through to Jan. 1, 2026, according to Yvon Godin, president of the L’Association Francophone des Municipalités du Nouveau-Brunswick (AFMNB).
“We’ve asked the government to be open to help these governments right now,” said Godin, a councillor for Rivière-du-Nord.
Last December, the Higgs government released a report by two Université de Moncton economic professors who reviewed municipal and regional finances in the province.
The report’s authors, André Leclerc and Pierre-Marcel Desjardins, concluded the current financial model for local governance isn’t sustainable. They predicted as many as 29 local entities – or about one-third of all municipalities and rural districts – could run a budget deficit from 2024 to 2026.
In his statement, Savoie said he was “proud of the work the department is doing to engage with our local government partners as we continue to navigate local governance reform.
“Since I have become minister, it has been my priority to work closely with municipalities on this file,” he said. “I want to recognize the efforts and hard work of local elected officials; we value their voice as we continue to collaborate.”
Liberal local government critic Jacques LeBlanc claims New Brunswick municipalities essentially lost a year of progress on the municipal fiscal reform file due to the departures of Allain and his deputy minister Ryan Donaghy in 2023.
Donaghy – a longtime deputy local government minister – was reassigned to the role of deputy education minister for the anglophone sector.
“(Donaghy) knew everything. He had everything lined up, the timelines were there,” LeBlanc said. “That was, to me, done intentionally.”
Green local government critic Kevin Arseneau said it’s clear that the Higgs government “mismanaged” the file.
“When you say you’re going to do something, you get it done,” said Arseneau, the MLA for Kent North. “This government made some promises and it didn’t follow through on them.
“They put their resources elsewhere.”
Municipal groups unite to advocate during election
Representatives of New Brunswick’s municipal associations continue to participate in a working group with provincial department officials to arrive at a fiscal framework.
But these associations are also preparing for a possible change in government come this fall.
Last week, New Brunswick’s anglophone and francophone municipal groups inked a memorandum of understanding on their shared priorities for a new fiscal framework with the province.
Those priorities include the diversification of revenue streams, “predictable” cost-sharing infrastructure programs, “stable and equitable” equalization funding, long-term funding for enhanced regional service commissions, and a “modern” property assessment and taxation system.
“We want all of the leaders of all the political parties to be aware that we’re united in our efforts around this now and going through the summer and into the election season,” said Tantramar Mayor Andrew Black, president of the Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick.
Green local government critic Kevin Arseneau said it’s clear that the Higgs government “mismanaged” the file.
“When you say you’re going to do something, you get it done,” said Arseneau, the MLA for Kent North. “This government made some promises and it didn’t follow through on them.
“They put their resources elsewhere.”
Municipal groups unite to advocate during election
Representatives of New Brunswick’s municipal associations continue to participate in a working group with provincial department officials to arrive at a fiscal framework.
But these associations are also preparing for a possible change in government come this fall.
Last week, New Brunswick’s anglophone and francophone municipal groups inked a memorandum of understanding on their shared priorities for a new fiscal framework with the province.
Those priorities include the diversification of revenue streams, “predictable” cost-sharing infrastructure programs, “stable and equitable” equalization funding, long-term funding for enhanced regional service commissions, and a “modern” property assessment and taxation system.
“We
want all of the leaders of all the political parties to be aware that
we’re united in our efforts around this now and going through the summer
and into the election season,” said Tantramar Mayor Andrew Black,
president of the Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick.
Executive director Dan Murphy and president Andrew Black, of the Union
of Municipalities of New Brunswick, are pictured in this file photo. Photo by Barbara Simpson/Brunswick News
Allain says he’s “impressed” by the unity on display by the two municipal associations and by the proposal they’ve developed.
Both the Liberals and the Greens say they’re supportive of the municipalities’ fiscal reform asks and know time is of the essence to help these local entities.
In the case of the Greens, Arseneau says his party would like to go further and give more decision-making powers to municipalities – the level of government closest to the people.
As for the Liberals, LeBlanc says he and party leader Susan Holt have been upfront with the municipal associations that they’d need in the new year to meet with stakeholders and develop a long-term fiscal framework if they were to form the next government.
PC MLA Trevor Holder is latest Tory to call it quits
Another member of New Brunswick legislature joins exodus ahead of this fall’s provincial election
The longest-serving member of the New Brunswick legislature is calling it quits, becoming the latest Progressive Conservative to opt against sticking with Premier Blaine Higgs for this year's election.
Trevor Holder, the MLA for Portland-Simonds, made the announcement in the legislature Thursday afternoon, delivering an ode to the institution he has been part of for a quarter-century.
"We may have other jobs in life. Some of them may pay more. Some of them may be be rewarding," he said.
"But I can't think of any other job, any other role, in a free and democratic society, that is a bigger honour than defending your constituents' interest in the New Brunswick legislature."
MLAs from all parties gave Holder a standing ovation, and Higgs, Liberal Leader Susan Holt and Green Leader David Coon all paid tribute to his work ethic, his integrity and his parliamentary skills.
Trevor
Holder and his Saint John colleague Dorothy Shephard quit as ministers
in June, complaining that the premier's unwillingness to involve his
cabinet and caucus in decisions was contrary to PC party values. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Holder was first elected in 1999 and was a cabinet minister under three different PC premiers.
But he broke ranks with Higgs last June as one of six PC MLAs who voted with the opposition to pass a Liberal motion calling for more study of changes to Policy 713, which deals with sexual orientation and gender identity in provincial schools.
He quit cabinet a week later.
Holder made no reference to Policy 713 or to his concerns with Higgs's leadership in his statement Thursday, and he did not speak to reporters.
But in his June 2023 letter resigning from cabinet, he said that the PC caucus "has been less about consensus and more about [Higgs] getting his own way."
He also rapped the premier for what he called "his lack of empathy, as well as his inability to listen to valid concerns from all members of his caucus."
Last fall, Holder said he had hoped his resignation from cabinet would "start a conversation about how we could get back to a thoughtful, consensus-building style of government in this province and in our party."
He also described in emotional terms how the divide in the PC party was affecting him.
"My children have never once complained about the publicness of our lives until this June, when, the night before I resigned, my daughter said to me, 'Daddy, I want this to end,'" he said.
Holder is the 10th PC MLA elected in the 2020 provincial election to either quit or decide not to run in this year's campaign.
The election is scheduled for Oct. 21.
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Another N.B. Tory MLA announces they won't run in the next election
Fundy-The Isles-Saint John West MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason joins Trevor Holder, Dorothy Shephard, Daniel Allain, Jeff Carr and Ross Wetmore in choosing not to re-offer later this year
Fundy-The Isles-Saint John West MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason says she’s not re-offering for the Progressive Conservatives six years after first winning in the long-time Liberal riding.
Anderson-Mason, who announced her decision Friday afternoon, served as attorney general and justice minister and regional minister responsible for the Regional Development Corporation from 2018 to 2020.
She was first elected in the riding, which includes St. George, Grand Manan, Deer Island, and parts of Saint John West, in 2018 before being re-elected in 2020.
She is the latest Tory “rebel” who has chosen not to run again after previously opposing the government’s changes in June 2023 to Policy 713, which sets gender rules in the province’s public schools.
Speaking to Brunswick News on Friday, Anderson-Mason said that she came to the decision based on the way backbench MLAs “are not engaged in any way in government decisions,” and said she hasn’t had a direct line to Premier Blaine Higgs since her demotion from cabinet in 2020.
“Because there is little-to-no communication between myself and the premier, I think that makes getting things done for my area challenging,” she said. “At the end of the day, we have to make the best decision for myself, my family, but most of all for my area.”
Anderson-Mason said she is “focused” on her constituency duties until the end of her term. While former riding president Glenn Hawkins said “the speculation was” that Higgs would not have signed her papers if she were nominated, Anderson-Mason said she was not pressured directly and said “if I wanted to run I would run.”
Anderson-Mason unseated incumbent Liberal cabinet minister Rick Doucet, who was elected in 2003 after the retirement of fellow Liberal Sheldon Lee, who had been the region’s MLA since 1978.
“We won a riding … and basically it was thought to be unwinnable by the Conservatives,” Hawkins said, noting that the government was in a minority position at the time.
A request for comment with the office of the premier was not returned by press time.
Stepping back was a difficult decision because “many people” reached out to urge her to run again, Anderson-Mason said.
“I feel like I have a lot to offer,” said Anderson-Mason, citing 17 years of legal experience. “I feel like my biggest gift is representing those who feel represented, and government didn’t really give me the opportunity to do that the way I expected.”
She said some departments were “very closed,” and said that decision-makers in Fredericton often didn’t understand “what island life was like” for Deer Island or Grand Manan Island or the “uniqueness” of the region.
“But I really had so much pleasure introducing the rest of the province to this amazing area that I represent, and … I think we made some real progress,” she said.
PC MLAs Trevor Holder, Dorothy Shephard, Daniel Allain, Jeff Carr and Ross Wetmore have announced that they will not re-offer in the next provincial election, with Arlene Dunn resigning her ministerial and MLA duties in February. Jill Green said in October she will re-offer. All were part of the June 2023 statement declaring their “extreme disappointment in a lack of process and transparency” regarding proposed changes to Policy 713.
Regarding Policy 713, Anderson-Mason said she didn’t consider it a “defining moment of my political career.”
She said it was “more than it needed to be,” and that they could have given teachers “a path to engage parents” while allowing children to feel safe at school and respecting the law.
“The explosion that was Policy 713 did not have to happen, and I think the momentum kept rolling when there was an indication that this might … garner more votes,” she said. “There’s an expression that’s repeatedly used in the PC party, and it’s ‘fish where the fish are.’ I personally don’t think that should be the focus of a government.”
Anderson-Mason said that the issues between herself and Higgs go back to 2020 when she was demoted from cabinet following the Progressive Conservative majority election win. She was one of a handful of Tories who voted that June to defeat the government’s proposed mandatory vaccination bill, which had initially invoked the charter’s notwithstanding clause.
When asked what caused the issues, Anderson-Mason did not mention any particular issue but said she is “an ardent defender of the rule of law.”
“There were different times where I may have been perceived as obstructionist because I felt that we should not dismiss the rule of law,” she said. “We shouldn’t spend all of our time caught up in courtroom challenges because we were not willing to do the hard work up front.”
She said that while some politicians have issues with policy debates in public, she considered that “her strength.”
“The difficult part is not being engaged and involved in the decisions of government,” she said, adding it was difficult to affect policy when caucus members were informed of some decisions just before the general public hears them.
“I think people believe we’re involved in those decisions and we’re not,” she said. “When I would speak up about it, it would appear I was going up against my government, but I never had an opportunity beforehand to discuss it behind closed doors.”
She also mentioned the government’s proposed French Immersion changes and said when she consulted others, she heard that they would be “devastating” to literacy, and that she was a part of arguing against that.
“In the future, who will be there to dig in and listen?” she said, but added people always step in to fill a gap.
She said she was not considering a run as an independent, although she said she is “not opposed” to municipal politics. With 17 years of legal experience, she said she’d recently had a conversation about a legal issue with someone and said it was “refreshing using my mind again.”
She said things she was proud of included, as minister for the regional development corporation, securing funding for the redevelopment of the Fundy Quay site on Saint John’s waterfront and work supporting smaller municipalities to upgrade their water and septic systems at a time when current population growth trends were not in the cards.
“I don’t feel that I’m done, but I feel that in the system that I’m in, I brought everything to the table,” she said. “I found it a real privilege to serve the people of Fundy-The Isles-Saint John West for six years, they were Liberal for 40 years.
“Thank you for taking a chance on a Conservative, it’s been a joy, an honour and a privilege.”
– With files from Andrew Waugh, John Chilibeck & Barbara Simpson
Dorothy Shephard is latest PC MLA to leave politics
One-third of Tory candidates elected in 2020 have now resigned or opted not to run again
Another Progressive Conservative MLA who clashed with Premier Blaine Higgs has decided not to be part of his campaign for re-election this year.
Four-term Saint John Lancaster member Dorothy Shephard, who was health minister during the worst part of the COVID-19 pandemic, says she will not run again.
Shephard said her public break with Higgs last year over Policy 713 and his leadership style were just the latest in a series of "challenging times" during her 14 years in politics, and this was the right time for her to look at other ways to contribute.
Shephard was one of six PC MLAs who voted with the opposition last June on a Liberal motion calling for more study of changes to Policy 713 on gender identity in schools. She resigned from cabinet the same day.
From
top left to right, Andrea Anderson-Mason, Trevor Holder, Dorothy
Shephard, Daniel Allain, Ross Wetmore and Jeff Carr. Shephard was one of
the six PC MLAs who voted with the opposition last June on a Liberal
motion calling for more study of changes to Policy 713. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
The changes included requiring parental consent before teachers and staff can use a child's chosen pronoun in verbal or official communication.
She told CBC News that she plans to stay involved with the PC Party and defend its moderate, centrist values.
"The way it's heading now, I think there is such a hyper-focused trend with far-right politics," she said. "That's my personal perspective."
She said the party should look back to the tenure of former prime minister Brian Mulroney to "understand the great accomplishments that come from centre-right, centre-left politics, and strongly promote that. So that's where my efforts are going to lie."
Higgs told reporters he wished Shephard the best in the future.
"She was dedicated to the province and dedicated to her riding, and that's what MLAs are supposed to do," he said.
But he pushed back at her comments about a rightward shift by the party.
"I guess we all have different interpretations of what 'to the right' means. If having parents involved in raising their kids and making sure that's an accepted practice is to the right, maybe we have to evaluate society."
Shephard said she plans to participate in PC Party annual meetings and other internal processes to try to help steer the party in a moderate, mainstream direction.
Her criticism of the party's direction were echoed by former Fundy-Royal Progressive Conservative MP John Herron, who confirmed Thursday he plans to run for the Liberals in the provincial riding of Hampton-Fundy-St. Martins.
He'll be taking on PC candidate Faytene Grasseschi, whose Christian conservative writings and views have generated "angst" among longtime Tory supporters, Herron said.
"It's their perspective that that nominee doesn't represent the progressive nature of this community," said Herron, who was elected twice as a PC MP in 1997 and 2000.
Former
Fundy-Royal Progressive Conservative MP John Herron, who confirmed
Thursday he plans to run for the Liberals in the provincial riding of
Hampton-Fundy-St. Martins, echoed Shephard's criticism of the PC party's
direction. (Submitted my John Herron)
Herron refused to be part of the federal Progressive Conservatives' merger with the Canadian Alliance in 2003 and sat as an independent in the House of Commons before running and losing as a Liberal in 2004.
Herron said "a broad and unlikely coalition" of Liberals, unhappy provincial Tories and "a touch of Green" had urged him to run against Grasseschi, whom Higgs has praised as part of a "revolution" within the provincial party.
"What we're seeing is a party based more on ideology," he said, adding that New Brunswickers favour "big bold policies" but "don't necessarily want to be part of a right-wing debating society."
Grasseschi said she would not respond to Herron's comments.
"I look forward to a campaign at this important time in our province when the cost of living and caring for the citizens of New Brunswick is top of mind for us all," she said in an email.
In a statement posted to social media Thursday morning, Shephard not-so-subtly rebutted comments Higgs has made about other PC MLAs who have opted out.
Carr,
back left, Holder and Shephard at a committee meeting in November.
Shephard and Carr have both said they won't run again, but Holder has
yet to say. (Alix Villeneuve/Radio-Canada)
"Surprisingly, politics was for me," she wrote.
"I am a Progressive Conservative, and I will carry the experience and learnings from these four terms into whatever the future holds next."
Earlier this year Higgs responded to other departures by saying about Jeff Carr that tough decision-making is "not for everyone" and, about Arlene Dunn, "politics turned out to not be for her."
In her statement, Shephard pointed to several initiatives she was proud of during her time as a minister, including kinship legislation in 2019 that clarified the rules around relatives able to care for a child who needs to be removed from the family home.
Health Minister Bruce Fitch has hinted he will retire after 21 years as an MLA. (Shane Magee/CBC)
Shephard is the ninth PC MLA elected in 2020 to quit or not to run again, meaning a full one-third of Higgs's victorious candidates from that campaign won't be on the ballot this fall.
At least three others may also bow out.
Two more of the six who rebelled over Policy 713 and the premier's leadership style, Trevor Holder and Andrea Anderson-Mason, have yet to say whether they'll run.
Health Minister Bruce Fitch has also hinted he will retire after 21 years as an MLA.
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Green leader says he'd strike deal with Liberals to oust Higgs
If PCs fall short of majority in snap election, Coon says he’d work with Holt to replace premier
The leader of the Green Party says he's prepared to make a deal with the Liberals to keep Blaine Higgs from governing if the New Brunswick premier fails to win a majority of seats in an early provincial election.
David Coon says his goal in a fall campaign will be to elect as many Green MLAs as possible.
"If that puts us in a position to negotiate with the Liberals to ensure that there'd be a government that is not led by Blaine Higgs, absolutely," Coon said.
"I certainly wouldn't negotiate with Blaine Higgs."
New
Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has hinted that he could call an
election ahead of the scheduled October 2024 date because of six
rebellious PC MLAs who could stymie his ability to pass legislation. (Stephen MacGillivray/The Canadian Press)
Coon's plan represents a shift from his approach in the aftermath of the 2018 provincial election, when no party captured a majority of seats.
The Progressive Conservatives under Higgs won 22 seats while the incumbent Liberals under Brian Gallant won 21. The Greens and the People's Alliance won three each.
That led to weeks of haggling over which of the two main parties would be able to win the confidence of the legislature and form a government.
At the time, Coon offered to negotiate with both the Liberals and the PCs.
But after Alliance Leader Kris Austin pledged to support Higgs, the PCs had the numbers to govern and didn't need Coon's support.
The Greens ultimately backed the Liberals in a confidence vote, but their combined numbers weren't enough for Gallant to stay in power.
This time, after almost five years of watching Higgs in power, Coon says he won't even entertain the idea of a deal with him — but would be willing to work with Liberal Leader Susan Holt to defeat and replace a Higgs minority government.
"As long as Blaine Higgs remains leader of the Conservative Party of this province, we would not enter into any negotiations with him in a new legislative assembly," Coon said.
"If there is a different [PC] leader, we would talk to both, absolutely. But as long as he's leader, that just leaves us with the Liberals to talk to."
Liberal
Leader Susan Holt says it's too early to discuss post-election
scenarios for a vote that may not even be happening. (Jacques
Poitras/CBC)
Holt said in a statement that it's too early to discuss post-election scenarios for a vote that may not even be happening.
"We'll cross that bridge if we come to it," she said. "At this point we're focused on doing everything we can to build a team that New Brunswickers can trust."
Higgs has hinted that he could call an election ahead of the scheduled October 2024 date because of six rebellious PC MLAs who could stymie his ability to pass legislation.
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Why is that I am not surprised???
As usual, she is incapable of taking a firm position on anything. Good thing she'll never become our premier.
"The question we face is will the focus be on delivering results for New Brunswickers, or will it be 12 months of political drama causing instability and stagnation in government?" he said.
"My focus and responsibility is to the citizens of this province ensuring we continue on our path of demonstrated continuous improvement."
Elections New Brunswick said in a statement Tuesday that based on speculation in media reports, it was accelerating its preparations for the next campaign.
That includes moving the training of new returning officers, originally scheduled for March 2024, to next week.
"All I have to say is we need to find a way to respect each other and have a path forward where parents can continue to play a role in raising their kids," Higgs said. "That's it. It's as simple as that."
Guests to the fundraising event on Fredericton's Waterloo Row paid $500 for "an evening with Premier Higgs," but protesters showed up at about 4:45 p.m. and stood on the sidewalk in front of the venue, with some carrying posters in support of LGBTQ rights and others calling on Higgs to resign."
I nearly died laughing the other day as I listened to Hogan on the radio explaining why he and Higgy would not talk the protesters they are now talking to
"It's not my security so much that I worry about it, it's the people that are being paid to make sure that I'm safe. So we didn't go across the street. There's been a lot of hoopla over that."
PC MLA says Tory 'rebels' can support all government bills this fall
Ross Wetmore says legislation will pass so an early election isn’t needed
Ross Wetmore, who represents Gagetown-Petitcodiac, says he has seen a list of about 20 pieces of legislation that will be introduced in the fall and there's nothing on the list he would vote against.
That list includes bills from the departments of post-secondary education and labour, social development, transportation and infrastructure, and agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries — all departments that six "rebel" Tory MLAs once oversaw as cabinet ministers.
"What we're bringing forward in legislation is what the six of us have worked on over a number of years, and I don't foresee any problem with the legislation going through," Wetmore said in an interview.
"Certainly I have no reason to slow down any of these bills."
Along
with Wetmore, PC MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason also bucked Higgs in June on
Bill 46, legislation that would reduce the decision-making powers of
anglophone school boards. (Roger Cosman/CBC)
The six MLAs voted with the Liberal opposition in June to pass a motion calling on the child and youth advocate to hold further consultations on the government's changes to Policy 713, which supports inclusion of LGBTQ students in provincial schools.
Higgs has hinted he may call an election ahead of the scheduled October 2024 date because the uprising by the six pose a risk to his ability to pass legislation this fall.
"The question we face is will the focus be on delivering results for New Brunswickers, or will it be 12 months of political drama causing instability and stagnation in government?" the premier said in a statement this week.
"My focus and responsibility is to the citizens of this province ensuring we continue on our path of demonstrated continuous improvement."
But Wetmore says the premier doesn't need to worry about passage of the bills or the capital budget in December.
"I don't believe there's a need for an election," he said.
"I can say in confidence that the six backbenchers support the legislation that's being brought forward. We may ask some questions, but that's our job."
Higgs's office did not immediate provide a comment on what Wetmore had to say.
Wetmore's commitment goes farther than what another of the six PC MLAs, Daniel Allain, said this week.
Allain said he would support the government on confidence votes such as the budget, but that other routine legislation not treated as confidence matters should be subject to a caucus discussion.
Wetmore and PC MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason also bucked Higgs in June on Bill 46, legislation that would reduce the decision-making powers of anglophone school boards.
The two MLAs voted with the Liberals in a failed attempt to send the bill to public hearings.
The government eventually put the legislation on hold, and Wetmore said there's no indication it will return.
"If it's going to come back, it hasn't been discussed," he said, pointing out that education officials suggested at a recent committee meeting it would not return.
Wetmore had already decided not to run again in the next election before the Policy 713 controversy split the PC caucus in the spring.
He wouldn't say if Higgs alone would be responsible for an early election if it happens.
"That's a hypothetical question. Why don't you ask me if the election's been called?" he said.
Like the other rebel MLAs, Wetmore says he hasn't "officially" spoken to the premier since June.
"I'm going to say nobody has reached out to me to have a discussion," he said.
"Look, my wife and I don't agree all the time, for heaven's sake, but at the end of the day I believe that as a caucus we can listen to each others' opinions and make informed decisions and move forward from there."
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Higgs threatens election to quell rebellion over Policy 713
6 ministers, 2 backbenchers denounce 'lack of process and transparency' but fall in line for key N.B. vote
Jacques Poitras · CBC News · Posted: Jun 08, 2023 1:17 PM ADT
"Former education minister Dominic Cardy, who resigned last October and was ejected from the PC caucus, said an election isn't necessary to remove Higgs from office.
He told reporters that if the premier visits Lt.-Gov. Brenda Murphy and asked her to dissolve the house, she should instead ask the PC caucus if another of its members could take over and lead a government with majority support in the legislature.
Cardy acknowledged that move, while possible in the parliamentary system, is rare but not out of the question.
"The lieutenant-governor's job is to ascertain whether there's anybody else who can command the majority of the house," he said.
"I'm saying there are very clearly people who could do that job. The premier has shown today he can't even command his own caucus, his own cabinet."
Anybody wonder why Higgy only booted out one rebel from his caucus?
PC rebellion still 'simmering' as MLA breaks ranks on education council bill
Tory MLA says new restrictions on DEC powers contradict premier’s rhetoric on role of parents
Jacques Poitras · CBC News · Posted: Jun 09, 2023 4:02 PM ADT
"Opposition Liberal Leader Susan Holt said Anderson-Mason's comments were "not typical … so it is a sign that there continues to be dissent in caucus.
"They're feeling a lot like New Brunswickers, I think. They're not included in the process of major legislation."
Even before Anderson-Mason's speech, Green Leader David Coon said the revolt was still "simmering" and it would be a long weekend for some Tories.
"The premier's going to have to make a decision on how he's going to actually lead a government where he's lost the confidence of so many cabinet ministers and members of his caucus."
Higgs questions MLA's motives
But Higgs told reporters Anderson-Mason had "another agenda" that he wouldn't identify.
He called her comments on a contradiction between the policy and the bill "a long reach."
"She is on her own mission and I'll leave it at that," he said.
Anderson-Mason was among the eight PC members who refused to take their seats Thursday morning after the release of the revisions to Policy 713.
They said they were expressing their "extreme disappointment in a lack of process and transparency."
The worst thing in my books he did was call an election based on his rules for the pandemic where NB was Canada's leader- he received confidence from the electorite for doing that and was re-elected. Then, he caught covid himself and when he not suffer from it, he let the testing slide way too early thinking "well, I didn't die from it, so it's not an issue." NB's total accumulated deaths now sit at 350 citizens with 1,648 hospitalizations.
Caucus chair in Moncton riding says he won’t decide until he knows who will lead PC party in 2024 campaign
Jacques Poitras · CBC News · Posted: Mar 17, 2023 8:00 AM ADT
"One PC MLA said he definitely would not be running next year: Ross Wetmore of Gagetown-Petitcodiac, first elected in 2010. He didn't respond to a followup email asking him for an interview."
Too Too Funny
Case closed !!
Instead, we just get new franchise managers trying to keep the name and shake up the menu.
PC MLA warns Higgs that early election call could backfire
Daniel Allain says single-issue 2014 campaign on shale gas led to PC defeat
Daniel Allain says parties that try to make an election about a single issue rarely succeed because voters often decide for themselves that other subjects matter more to them.
"I lived an election in 2014 on one issue, one subject. It's hard to stay on that subject for 30 days," he said, referring to a PC re-election campaign urging voters to "Say Yes" to shale gas development.
"Voters want to know about more than one issue," said Allain, who was an adviser to then-premier David Alward in 2014.
"After two weeks people were agreeing with us. However, the last two weeks, we couldn't pivot onto something else."
The Liberals went on to win that election.
Premier
Higgs waded into a crowd about 250 people on the front lawn of the
legislature last week, shaking hands with people carrying signs
denouncing sex education and LGBTQ rights. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
Allain noted the Manitoba PC government is now campaigning for re-election after promising a Policy 713-like initiative, "and I don't think the PCs are doing that good."
Premier Blaine Higgs has hinted he may call an election before the scheduled October 2024 date because of dissent in his caucus triggered by his government's changes to Policy 713.
Those changes include a requirement that teachers get parental consent before allowing children under 16 to use a new name or pronoun of their choice in classrooms.
The changes are now subject to a court challenge, and Allain says that process should be allowed to go forward.
"Right now New Brunswickers want to talk about inflation, housing and health care."
Marc
Savoie, former president of the PC riding association in Moncton East,
said he resigned because he can't support both his transgender son and
Blaine Higgs. (Gilles Landry/Radio-Canada)
Higgs attended a march last week of New Brunswickers opposed to LGBTQ school policies, which prompted the acting president of the PC riding association in Allain's Moncton East constituency to resign.
Marc Savoie, the father of a transgender son, said he made the decision after Higgs went to the march and chose not to greet counter-protestors supporting LGBTQ rights.
"He never had any intentions of listening to what the other side has to say. His mind is made up," Savoie said.
"I can't support my son and support Blaine Higgs. I don't see those two aligning."
Allain wouldn't comment on Savoie's resignation but said he had been a good volunteer for the party.
Another PC riding association president, Noémie David Gauvin, also recently quit her position over Higgs's stance on Policy 713.
"I find it sad to take a step backwards after we took a few steps forward" with the original policy, she told Radio-Canada.
Seeing Higgs attend last week's march "confirmed I made the right decision by resigning," said Gauvin, who has a transgender brother.
Noémie
David-Gauvin, former president of the Shippagan-Lamèque-Miscou riding
association, said she could no longer support the party following the
premier's position on Policy 713 and the rights of transgender people. (Radio-Canada)
The former local government reform minister was one of six PC MLAs who voted with the opposition Liberals in June on their motion calling for more consultation on Policy 713.
That led Child and Youth Advocate Kelly Lamrock to draft a report that concluded the Higgs changes violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the New Brunswick Human Rights Act and the Education Act.
Four of the rebellious PC MLAs were cabinet ministers. Two later resigned and the premier shuffled the other two to the backbench.
Higgs suggested earlier this month that those six defiant MLAs remain "a big concern" who could jeopardize his ability to pass legislation, a scenario that might affect his thinking on an early election.
Elections N.B. accelerates preparations
In a statement Tuesday, Higgs pointed out the legislature is scheduled to open a new session Oct. 17.
"The question we face is will the focus be on delivering results for New Brunswickers, or will it be 12 months of political drama causing instability and stagnation in government?" he said.
"My focus and responsibility is to the citizens of this province ensuring we continue on our path of demonstrated continuous improvement."
Elections New Brunswick said in a statement Tuesday that based on speculation in media reports, it was accelerating its preparations for the next campaign.
That includes moving the training of new returning officers, originally scheduled for March 2024, to next week.
About
100 people supporting LGBTQ rights and inclusive school policies to
protect them held a counter-protest across the street from the march
last week. Premier Higgs did not walk over to speak with them. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Allain said Tuesday he won't vote against the PC budget next March, which if defeated would trigger an election.
"I'm actually proud of our budgets that we did. So I hope as a party we can move on. There's some reconciliation that needs to be done. We have to talk as a group," he said.
"I hope we take that opportunity to do it, because I think New Brunswickers want to see a four-year mandate. Nobody wants an election today. It costs too much."
Whether he would vote against other PC bills would depend on what kind of consultation happens within the entire party caucus.
"There's only one person that can definitely bring the team together," he said, but added that Higgs has not spoken to him since the cabinet shuffle three months ago.
Savoie and Gauvin said they remain PC party members but would not work for the party in a campaign with Higgs as leader.
"I'm not saying I'll never come back but for the moment I can't," Gauvin said. "It would be against my values. I can't support a party whose leader takes that position [on LGBTQ issues]."
Savoie said he's still hopeful the party will return to the moderate political centre after the premier leaves.
"I truly believe it'll happen. In my heart I still believe the vast majority of party members don't see things the way Blaine Higgs does and that keeps me invested in the party," he said.
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doesn't need Policy 713 to get re-elected.
In fact if I were he or anyone of his MLAs
I wouldn't even 'go there'.
Premier Higgs has shown NBers. how important
Fiscal Management is for the well being of
a Province and getting good return on Investment
displays a caring how taxpayers' dollars are spent.
of a person because of Political Stripe.
"Side issues" such as Policy 713 only serve (intentional or otherwise) to divide NB'ers. I see very little in the way of efforts to recognize that NB actually has citizens/voters north of Woodstock and Miramichi.
The "special deals" to Irving continue to be blatantly obvious (as they would also be under the Liberals) and should be eliminated.
Then we have NB Power (the NB albatross), pretty much controlled by Higgs (not good).
The time has come for a new PC leader, asap.
Daniel Allain would be a bring this party back to where it should be.
The NB Liberals still have a 1% chance at a majority and 6% chance at a minority government.
This article is smoke and mirrors.
Your actions say otherwise Mr. Higgs.
He wouldn't get my vote but the opinions from the left regarding the policy are unfortunately a minority. I wish it wasn't but it is.
Hopefully with an election called it will be just a Conservative minority which a minority is best case with any forming government and hopefully with added Green seats.
Tuesday, 19 September 2023
A snap election would give Higgs a PC Party in his own image
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FohimMcE_g&ab_channel=CharlesLeblanc
Communication New Brunswick refuse Blogger to have access to Premier Blaine Higgs!!!
A snap election would give Higgs a PC Party in his own image
Premier’s caucus critics are already marginalized. The next campaign could end their dissent for good
The six dissident PC MLAs who hoped he'd retire had those hopes dashed by his announcement last Friday that he'll stay and run for a new mandate in October 2024 — if not before.
Ironically, their main function now may be as a pretext for Higgs to dissolve the legislature earlier than scheduled and end whatever influence they may still have.
The only date for an election "at this point," the premier said last week, is the one created by fixed-date election sections of provincial law — Oct. 21, 2024.
But that law also gives the lieutenant-governor the authority to heed any request for an early election, something Higgs wouldn't rule out if the six rebels make procedural mischief with his legislation.
"We all know the situation that exists within the legislature and within our government, so obviously that remains a big concern," Higgs said.
We've heard rumours [Higgs is] preparing, that he wants an election now.
— Liberal Leader Susan Holt
The six Tory rebels, who broke ranks in a vote on Policy 713 in June, told their caucus colleagues in an Aug. 10 email that they had "no intent to disrupt our government's legislative business."
The email obtained by CBC News warned, however, that if they felt the PC caucus's role wasn't being respected, "we will stand up for what we feel is right."
Whether they'd go as far as voting against Higgs in a confidence vote isn't clear.
But the premier's comments about the uncertainty reinforce rumours that the PCs could hit the campaign trail within the next month.
"I'm getting many messages from New Brunswickers that 'he's going, he's going,'" Liberal Leader Susan Holt said last week.
"We've heard rumours he's preparing, that he wants an election now."
Another piece of evidence is feeding the speculation.
PC MLAs have been told that new party riding associations — required to reflect the redrawn boundaries of the province's 49 electoral constituencies — should be officially established by Sept. 30.
Those associations are the party entities that nominate election candidates.
But why would Higgs go early?
Liberal Leader Susan Holt says she's heard rumours that Higgs wants an election now. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Despite, or perhaps because of, the Policy 713 controversy, the premier's approval rating has inched up since the spring, as has satisfaction with the government.
In the Angus Reid Institute's quarterly survey of approval for Canadian premiers, Higgs's rating has improved from 25 per cent in March to 30 per cent this month.
More significantly, Narrative Research has had the PCs statistically tied with the opposition Liberals in voting intentions in three straight quarterly polls.
Because of how Liberal support is clustered in northern and francophone ridings, that tie could easily produce a majority PC win.
Perhaps just as tempting, pulling the trigger early would let Higgs accelerate his reshaping of the party.
Higgs inherited a caucus of PC MLAs with a range of opinions — "a diverse group," he would say, sometimes ruefully, when there was an outbreak of dissent.
Many of them had long histories in the party that put them at odds with some of his ideas and did not support him for leader.
Now the most rebellious are out of cabinet, replaced by firm loyalists, and at least some of the rebels have already said they won't run next time if Higgs is still leader.
For his part, the premier wouldn't say last week whether he'll sign their nomination papers if they did try to stay on the ballot.
"It remains to be seen where we go from there but I think it was pretty clear that several have made that decision," he said.
That will leave a more firmly pro-Higgs slate of candidates, whenever the election happens.
Unlike in 2018, when the vote produced a minority government, and 2020, when Higgs won his first majority, anyone who decides to run for the PCs next time will know exactly what to expect from him when he controls the agenda.
Should he win, a future caucus and cabinet would be more homogeneously Higgsian than ever before — a PC government created in his own image.
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2 dissident Tories say they won't destabilize N.B. legislature this fall
Premier won't rule out early election, citing caucus turmoil
Trevor Holder and Andrea Anderson-Mason both say they're not looking to make procedural mischief or bring down the government when the legislature returns next month.
Higgs said last Friday that the legislated Oct. 21, 2024, date for the next election is the only date "at this point" but added that "the situation that exists within the legislature and within our government … remains a big concern."
That was a reference to six PC MLAs, including two who quit his cabinet and two he shuffled out, who voted with the opposition Liberals on a motion about Policy 713 in June.
If those six MLAs withheld their support, Higgs wouldn't be able to pass legislation.
'The
election date as far as I'm concerned is next year and that's what I'm
basing my actions on,' says Holder, who resigned from cabinet in June
over the premier's leadership style. (Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick)
Holder, who resigned from cabinet in June over the premier's leadership style, said he had no comment on Higgs's refusal to rule out a snap election.
"The election date as far as I'm concerned is next year, and that's what I'm basing my actions on," he said.
Asked if there was any uncertainty about the government being able to pass legislation this fall, Holder answered, "None."
Anderson-Mason said Higgs seems to be suggesting "that he might not have the confidence of the House, and we all know there are very few confidence votes, one of them being the budget."
"And I've got nothing but praise for the past budgets we've introduced. … I have the same level of expectation that they will be as good as they have been in the past."
Rebel MLAS 'reached out' to Higgs
She said if Higgs is worried about losing confidence votes, "I would strongly urge him to converse with us."
The former attorney-general said she and the other rebel MLAs "reached out" to Higgs over the summer to have a conversation about the fall session, but that hasn't happened.
The full PC caucus hasn't met since the June revolt either.
Anderson-Mason
says she and the other rebel MLAs 'reached out' to Higgs over the
summer to have a conversation about the fall session, but that hasn't
happened. (New Brunswick Legislative Assembly livestream)
Both Holder and Anderson-Mason also said that their recent tough line of questioning on the legislature's public accounts committee wasn't aimed at the government but was in line with the committee's accountability role.
Anderson-Mason told reporters that media treatment of PC questioning of government departments can make it seem more "salacious" than it actually is.
"Sometimes they see it as criticism, but it's really an opportunity to learn."
Holder said during a session on Tuesday and in an interview that the approach is non-political and is "getting back to what this committee's purpose and intent always have been."
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Rallies against LGBTQ rights in schools met with counter-protests across Canada
Thousands marched for and against policies that allow gender diversity to be taught in schools
The Canadian Press · Posted: Sep 20, 2023 3:09 PM ADT
"The protests are linked to emerging policies across the country, including in New Brunswick and Saskatchewan, that require young people to get parental consent before teachers can use their preferred first names and pronouns."
Higgs greets marchers opposing LGBTQ rights
Premier says his presence is about parental rights, but critics say he’s polarizing New Brunswickers
Jacques Poitras · CBC News · Posted: Sep 20, 2023 4:11 PM ADT
Too Too Funny that they claim that after doing just exactly that all summer.
Cardy Removed From PC Caucus
It’s official — Dominic Cardy is no longer a member of the Progressive Conservative caucus.
The move comes a day after Cardy unexpectedly resigned as minister of education and early childhood development
In a letter, Premier Blaine Higgs said caucus found his conduct and actions over the last few days to be “inexcusable.”
The premier referred to a meeting with Cardy on Thursday morning where he expressed concerns about the education system and informed him of plans to remove him from the cabinet.
Higgs said he was “surprised to immediately receive your resignation letter.”
He called the content of Cardy’s resignation letter as “vindictive and misleading.”
Higgs described it as “unfortunate and hurtful” that he would choose to leave this way.
Higgs said he plans to move forward and do the hard work their team was elected to do adding he is focused on making improvements “that benefit New Brunswick in critical areas like health and education.”
He ended the letter by saying it’s important to “rise above” and stay focused on the mission at hand before signing with the words “province before politics.”
Fired cabinet minister speaks out on premier's leadership style
Jeff Carr remains PC MLA, supports leadership review
Ousted minister Jeff Carr is questioning the rationale Premier Blaine Higgs has given for removing him from his cabinet.
On Tuesday, Higgs shuffled his cabinet, replacing Carr in transportation and former local government minister Daniel Allain.
The reason given was that the two former ministers broke with cabinet solidarity by voting for an opposition motion on Policy 713.
"We have to respect the parliamentary system that we're in, the sanctity of cabinet, and the fact we'll have very frank and open discussion in cabinet or in caucus, but in cabinet you have to have solidarity," said Higgs after the shuffle.
But Carr isn't buying that explanation.
"Cabinet solidarity, yeah, you can't square that up when it's an opposition motion," said Carr, speaking to Information Morning Fredericton.
Higgs claimed the vote on Policy 713 was not whipped, but he said Tuesday, 'I never made it a free vote, either.' (Stephen MacGillivray/The Canadian Press)
"It's not a whipped vote and nobody asked us how we were going to vote. Nobody talked to us about that after we voted for, like, 18 days."
Cabinet conflict
Cabinet solidarity is the concept that cabinet ministers must openly support the government on all matters, and if a minister can't or won't support the government they should resign.
But this clashes with the idea of a free vote, meaning government members are not whipped — expected to vote on the government side, which sometimes happens with votes on issues such as abortion or LGBTQ rights.
There are different interpretations on whether cabinet ministers can vote against the government on a free vote, like Carr did, or must simply abstain, as Arlene Dunn did on the same Policy 713 vote. She remains in cabinet.
Political
scientists J.P. Lewis said it's up to the premier to interpret when a
minister has violated the sanctity of the cabinet. (Graham Thompson/CBC)
J.P. Lewis, a political scientist at UNB Saint John, said cabinet ministers have been expected to support the government even on free votes, historically, but the interpretation of that rule comes down to the premier.
"It's the premier's prerogative," said Lewis. "It's up to the first minister to interpret when they think a minister has violated [cabinet solidarity.]"
Premier 'lost' says Carr
Carr said he questions whether he should have stayed in cabinet as long as he did, but said he was hoping to have a moderating effect on the premier.
He said there have been ongoing issues with Higgs's leadership style, adding the premier's behaviour at a weekend PC party meeting was indicative of his style behind the scenes.
"People were offering the premier an olive branch to ask him to fix this within caucus," said Carr. "He burned that olive branch in front of a number of very good volunteers."
Carr also had criticism for the people running that meeting, saying it was unorganized and the agenda was changed without advance warning.
"It was like it was purposely unofficial so that there would be no record of what would happen on Saturday," said Carr.
CBC News has reached out to PC party president Erika Hachey about Carr's description of the meeting and is awaiting a response.
Carr remains PC MLA
He dodged questions about whether he still supports Higgs, but said he doesn't support his leadership style.
He does support a leadership review.
"The premier seems to have lost his way with this style," said Carr.
"I feel for him and his family and my colleagues, and we have to do something soon."
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With files from Information Morning Fredericton
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