Tootoo’s tangled affair alleged cause of downfall
Media report suggests MP was involved with woman and her mother
OTTAWA— The Prime Minister’s Office is not commenting on allegations about Hunter Tootoo’s fall from political grace. Tootoo, the MP for Nunavut, abruptly quit his post as fisheries minister and left the Liberal caucus in May, saying at the time that he was seeking treatment for alcohol addiction.
But in August, the political rookie said he had been involved in what he called a “consensual but inappropriate” relationship.
On Monday, a Globe and Mail report alleged that Tootoo was at the centre of a tangled affair involving a woman and her mother.
The newspaper, citing confidential sources, said Tootoo broke off a relationship with the woman, who was working in his Parliament Hill office, in order to pursue an affair with her mother.
The report said the woman, upset about the terminated relationship, caused a disturbance in Tootoo’s Parliament Hill office.
That prompted Tootoo to seek a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to reveal details of the relationship and his own addiction to alcohol.
The Globe and Mail did not identify the sources or the women.
The Star has not been able to confirm the story.
In a recent interview with CBC News, Tootoo said no one in the Prime Minister’s Office knew the reason he was seeking the meeting and that it was his choice to step aside to focus on his recovery.
“I explained everything to him. I told him everything,” Tootoo told CBC News.
“I told him this is what happened and this is what made me realize I need help.”
He said Trudeau was supportive, told him to take it day by day and gave him a hug at the end of their meeting. A spokesperson for Trudeau declined to comment Monday and instead referred a reporter to a past statement that discussed the May 31 meeting between the prime minister and Tootoo.
“Mr. Tootoo informed the prime minister that he took full and sole responsibility for his inappropriate workplace conduct,” the statement said.
An aide to Tootoo said they had no comment to make on the latest allegations.
He said Tootoo was touring the western regions of his expansive Arctic riding and “getting a great reception” from constituents. He said the MP would be in Ottawa next week when Parliament resumes after its summer recess.
In his interview with CBC News, Tootoo told anchor Peter Mansbridge that he “escaped into alcohol” because of a troubled childhood.
“I did things that weren’t me. My actions hurt people that I care about and people that care about me.
“That made me realize I needed help to deal with this problem,” Tootoo said.