Conservative leader Andrew Scheer took advantage of the House of Commons’ summer break on Thursday to unveil his new right-hand woman and four other key deputies for the upcoming fall session.
Scheer, who spent nearly an hour in the national press theater answering questions in both official languages, kicked things off by announcing that his former leadership rival, Lisa Raitt, would become deputy leader of the Official Opposition.
“She’s a proud Cape Bretoner who put down roots in the Greater Toronto Area,” Scheer said. “I know she’ll be a strong voice for a positive Conservative approach.”
In addition, Scheer has selected Quebec MP Alain Rayes to become his political lieutenant in that key province, and B.C.’s Mark Strahl will replace Gord Brown as the party’s whip.
Manitoba’s Candice Bergen will remain in her current role as House leader for the Conservatives, with Alberta’s Chris Warkentin also staying on as deputy House leader.
No comment on Payette’s past
The Conservative leader was also asked repeatedly on Thursday for his thoughts on news stories surfacing about Governor General-designate Julie Payette.
Scheer said his support for her appointment has not changed.
“I won’t speak to what events happened in her personal life, but I do think that if the prime minster is receiving questions on what process leads to these types of nominations he should at the very least answer those types of questions.”
READ MORE: Justin Trudeau won’t comment about Julie Payette’s background check
Payette’s past has become the subject of headlines this week after it was revealed she was charged with assault (allegedly against her then-husband) in 2012, only to have those charges quickly dropped and her record expunged.
Then, on Wednesday, the Toronto Star reported that a few months before that incident, Payette had been involved in a collision that killed a pedestrian. Police in Maryland determined that the former astronaut was not at fault.
Khadr payout
One thing Scheer would comment on at length on Thursday was the controversial settlement paid by the Canadian government to former Guantanamo Bay inmate Omar Khadr.
The settlement is reported to be about $10.5 million and came with an apology to Khadr from Ottawa.
Scheer acknowledged that there are now limited avenues to “correct the situation” when it comes to Khadr’s settlement. But there were other options available to the government, he repeated, and the Supreme Court decisions that confirmed Khadr’s rights were violated did not force the government to compensate him monetarily.
“The only court decision that spoke to remedy spoke to repatriation (to Canada), which happened,” Scheer said.
“The very fact that Omar Khadr is free in Canada today is because of actions that the previous government took to remedy the rights violation that the Supreme Court ruled took place. Anything above and beyond that was a choice made by the Liberal government.”
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The government has argued that battling Khadr’s civil lawsuit against Ottawa in court would have ended up costing tens of millions.
Representatives from Scheer’s party have appeared on American television this week to blast the decision. Scheer rejected outright the notion that the bad press has the potential to derail upcoming NAFTA negotiations with Washington.
He also maintained that the public blow-back against Khadr’s settlement has nothing to do with the fact that he’s Muslim.
“That’s ridiculous,” Scheer said. “The objection to the Omar Khadr payout has nothing to do with his background and everything to do with his actions on the battlefield in Afghanistan.”
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