Does hotel living hint it’s checkout time for Mulcair?|
NDP leader Tom Mulcair last month disclosed that he is carrying mortgages on four separate properties, including a “secondary residence” in Quebec City, but has been living out of a suitcase when in Ottawa.
As speculation swirls about whether he will remain party leader, Mulcair hasn’t purchased a new home or even rented an apartment in Ottawa or Gatineau, suggesting he might not be planning a long stay in the National Capital Region.
Mulcair has been staying in Ottawa hotels since he was forced to leave Stornoway, the official residence of the leader of the Official Opposition, after the NDP was reduced to third-party status in the October federal election.
In the first conflict-ofinterest disclosure Mulcair filed with federal ethics commissioner Mary Dawson since the election, he reported that he and his wife, Catherine, jointly hold mortgages on four properties, as well as a line of credit, all with the Royal Bank of Canada.
In his previous disclosure, filed a year earlier, Mulcair reported holding a mortgage on only one property. The Mulcairs own a home in Beaconsfield, west of Montreal and far from his downtown riding of Outremont. They have repeatedly re-mortgaged the home since they acquired it in 1983.
It is unclear whether Mulcair neglected to report the mortgages on the other homes in his past declarations, or whether he simply added new mortgages in the past year.
His office wouldn’t say why he chose to declare the loans only in January.
“Mr. Mulcair’s primary residence is in Montreal and it remained his primary residence during his time as Leader of the Official Opposition,” Mulcair aide George Smith said an email.
“As the NDP no longer has access to Stornoway or other official residence, Mr. Mulcair has stayed in a hotel during his time in Ottawa. Their secondary residence is indeed in Québec City and their two cottages are in Quebec.”
Mulcair’s future as NDP leader is uncertain after the party’s mediocre showing in the federal election. He will face a confidence vote at the party’s upcoming national convention in the spring, unless he announces his resignation before then.
Should he stay on, he will likely travel outside Ottawa often to build up support among New Democrats across the country.
I GET THAT PEOPLE IN THE INDUSTRY ARE ANXIOUS TO MOVE FORWARD. BUT WE’VE GOT A BIT OF WORK TO DO. — MP BILL BLAIR ON THE LIBERALS’ PLANS TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA