FUNDRAISING LETTER FROM O’TOOLE LIFTS MACKAY PITCHES

A fundraising letter sent by new Conservative Leader Erin O’toole to party members contains passages identical to sections of his rival Peter Mackay’s campaign website. The missive to members was sent earlier this month in the wake of O’toole's victory over Mackay in the August leadership vote. Portions of the letter about the impact of COVID-19, O’toole's vision for the party and a definition of conservative values all contain the same sentences and phrasing as Mackay’s campaign website. Conservative party spokesman Cory Hann says human error is to blame: a contractor hired to write the note drafted one version in the event Mackay won the contest, and one for an O’toole victory. Hann says content from the Mackay letter was inadvertently left in when the final version was put together.