Tory MP takes feud to Fuhr’s home turf
Former minister of veterans affairs, in Kelowna Friday to talk to veterans, says local Liberal MP ‘backed out’ of debate on veterans’ issues
There appears to be some bad blood between Kelowna’s Liberal MP and a Tory rival from Ontario. Kelowna-Lake Country MP Stephen Fuhr and Durham MP Erin O’Toole, of the Conservatives, have exchanged heated words on Twitter recently over veterans’ issues.
The feud was brought home for Fuhr on Friday, when O’Toole hosted a roundtable for veterans at the Kelowna branch of the Royal Canadian Legion. O’Toole was minister of veterans affairs in Stephen Harper’s government in 2015.
O’Toole said he wanted to debate Fuhr in Kelowna, but claimed Fuhr “backed out.”
“When I first suggested a debate on defence issues and veterans’ issues, his remarks were ‘any time,’” O’Toole said Friday. “He suddenly got cold feet because there is a bad record. My impression is he does not want to debate.”
A Twitter exchange on Dec. 23 shows O’Toole suggested Jan. 25 or Jan. 26 for the debate in Kelowna, and Fuhr told O’Toole he would not be available those dates.
O’Toole said he “may come anyway,” which he did Friday.
“I think it’s a bit of a political stunt,” Fuhr said Friday from Ottawa. “He’s known for weeks I can’t make that date. He’s scheduled to do this when I’m not here to make it seem like I don’t care about the issues, when obviously I do care about the issues.”
Fuhr said O’Toole has “no credibility when it comes to veterans issues.”
“Anybody with an internet connection and some critical analysis can see the Conservatives cut from veterans when they were in office,” he said. “They closed offices, they fired staff and they didn’t deliver for veterans.”
If he could have been in town, Fuhr said he “absolutely” would have debated O’Toole on veterans’ issues.
“I’m not going to let Erin O’Toole come to Kelowna and start grandstanding on veterans’ issues when he’s got zero credibility on it,” he said.
Since taking power in 2015, Fuhr said, the Liberals have invested $6 billion in Veterans Affairs, with another $3.9 billion to come.
“That is $10 billion in opening new offices and hiring staff, on new programming, on beefing up existing programming and a pension-for-life as promised,” said Fuhr. “That is good for veterans across the board.”
O’Toole said he was planning to hear from veterans in Kelowna and to get their input on what their needs are.
“(The Liberals) ran promising to go back to the old pension system . . . and they broke that promise,” said O’Toole. “I’m respectful in politics and people will have different opinions . . . but I always say you have to be willing to defend your ideas or positions as public figures.”