With the 14 candidates vying to be leader of the federal Conservative party in Halifax over the weekend, someone was bound to address the elephant in the room.
The Liberal Red Tide swept up every riding in the last election, shutting the Conservatives out of the region.
Leadership hopeful, Erin O’Toole says that’s a result that hasn’t worked for Atlantic Canadians.
“Thirty-two Liberal MPs – I call them the little lambs. You know why? Because in Ottawa, it’s silence of the lambs.”
The candidates are trying to win back the support of Atlantic Canadians after the Liberals won every seat in the region in the last election.
A loyalty that O’Toole says, hasn’t been rewarded.
“Thousands of job losses, they wanted to take the Atlantic seat on the Supreme Court from Atlantic Canada, and what did you hear – silence of the lambs.”
O’Toole says Atlantic Canadian MPs are unwilling to challenge the Liberal cabinet and the region is suffering as a result.
Erin O’Toole calls Atlantic Liberal MPs “Silence of the 32 Lambs” @nspc fed leadership debate pic.twitter.com/klEKnQRn13
— CKBW Radio (@ckbwradio) February 5, 2017
But South Shore- St.Margaret’s MP Bernadette Jordan was quick to fire back.
“I think it’s really interesting that the Conservatives, all of a sudden, have an interest in Atlantic Canada when they haven’t bothered with them for the last ten years when they were in power.”
Jordan says the Conservatives were shut out in the last election because they ignored the region for so long.
She says the Atlantic Liberal Caucus works together to develop programs like the Atlantic Growth Strategy to increase economic development in the region.
She also points to numerous investments in infrastructure and spending on small craft harbours as examples of things that have come out of the Atlantic caucus.
Jordan compares that to the lack of action from the previous Harper government in Atlantic Canada.
“There are some politicians who are focused on what they are seen to be doing and then there are those who are focused on actually doing it. And I think what you have in Atlantic Canada are people who are actually focused on getting the work done.”
Jordan says everywhere you look, you see the investments in infrastructure spending that have been made and continue to be made by the Liberal government.