Accused Tory napper Rob Anders removed from veterans affairs committee

OTTAWA – A Conservative MP accused of falling asleep during a presentation by homeless veterans has been removed from the House of Commons committee where he allegedly took his nap.

Rob Anders was quietly shuffled Wednesday from the Commons veterans affairs committee.

He was reassigned to the Joint Senate-House scrutiny of regulations committee.

Anders swapped committee duties with a fellow Tory caucus member, Corneliu Chisu.

Conservative MP Joe Preston, who chairs the procedure and House affairs committee, tabled a report in Parliament that received the necessary approval required for the switch of committee assignments.

Earlier this month, media reports said members of a group representing homeless veterans saw Anders fall asleep during their presentation to the committee.

Anders denied he fell asleep, and one report quoted him as firing back at one of his accusers by suggesting he had ties to the New Democrats.

Anders apologized for the comment in a statement that was released by the Prime Minister’s Office.

The statement quoted Anders as saying he has enormous respect for those who have served their country.

But it wasn’t enough to save his spot on the veterans committee.

“It is clear that over the past couple of months Conservative MP Rob Anders has become a distraction to the work of the Veterans Affairs Committee,” Liberal critic Sean Casey said in a statement Wednesday.

“The Conservatives put on a brave face when resisting calls from veterans to remove Mr. Anders as a result of his habit of sleeping during Committee meetings.”

Anders was also apparently caught falling asleep in the House of Commons last year, a moment captured on camera. The subsequent YouTube video was widely viewed.