Above: Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne discusses the ongoing spat between her and Prime Minister Stephen Harper as he continues to refuse to meet with her.
Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne says she was neither attempting to gain publicity nor acting on a personal vendetta when she publicly released a letter sent to Prime Minister Stephen Harper requesting a meeting.
“It is not a personal request, this is a request on behalf of the people in Ontario.”
Late last week, Wynne wrote to Harper, noting more than a year had passed since they last met, on Dec. 5, 2013.
READ MORE: Wynne asks Harper for first face-to-face meeting in more than a year
Fifty-three weeks without a meeting between the prime minister and the leader of the country’s biggest province is simply too long, Wynne wrote before requesting the two meet early in the new year.
Since the 2013 meeting, the Liberal premier and Conservative prime minister have publicly criticized each other over pension plans, the provincial deficit and infrastructure planning.
Speaking to Tom Clark, Wynne said there are a number of files for the two to discuss including the Ring of Fire and the auto industry.
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Wynne has yet to receive an answer from the prime minister, though Harper met with newly minted Toronto Mayor John Tory Thursday, the same day Wynne sent her letter.
Harper also met with Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Paul Davis last week.
WATCH: Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Paul Davis talks to Tom Clark following a disappointing meeting late Friday with the Prime Minister.
Following the meeting late Friday, Davis threatened to quash the European free trade deal, called CETA, if Harper didn’t live up to his promise of giving hundreds of millions to the Newfoundland fishing industry.
Davis said Ottawa approached the province regarding “minimum processing requirements” for fishing.
As it stands, Newfoundland and Labrador has authority over processing fish in the province as well as licensing abilities, Davis explained.
READ MORE: PM Harper snubs Wynne, meets with Toronto Mayor John Tory instead
As Davis says, federal negotiators agreed to a joint $400-million fund, of which Ottawa would pay $280 million dollars.
He maintains the cash was in exchange for the province giving up minimum processing rules under CETA that helped protect fish plant jobs.
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In a statement after the meeting, the Prime Minister’s Office said an unspecified amount is available for related losses.
“The Minimum Processing Requirements fund was always intended to compensate hard-working Newfoundlanders and Labradorians for demonstrable losses as a result of the removal of these requirements,” the statement said.
“It was never intended to be a blank cheque.”
Davis, however, contended the necessity to demonstrate losses before accessing the funds was never part of the negotiations.
With files from The Canadian Press
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