Conservative leader Erin O’Toole on Saturday defended her party’s decision to expel a candidate linked to Islamophobic tweets from years ago. However, the party has not taken any action against another Conservative candidate who made similar comments online earlier this month.
When asked by a reporter about his decision to ditch Beaches-East York candidate Lisa Robinson and allow Steven Cotter, who is seeking re-election in Central Nova, to remain part of the party, O’Toole said that “we are leading carried out a positive campaign based on uniting the country and putting it back on its feet from the economic and health point of view ”.
“I want people on my team who share the exact same approach.”
Global News reached out to the Conservative Party for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
Robinson said he suspended his campaign on Friday after Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith, who is seeking reelection at Beaches-East York, posted screenshots of several Islamophobic tweets that appeared to be sent from Robinson’s account.
“Our community has already faced hatred too many times, and it is unacceptable that the Conservative Party is giving someone with these views a platform,” Erskine-Smith’s tweet read.
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Robinson denied in a Facebook post on Friday that the account, titled “Candidate for City Councilman for District 1,” was his. She claims that the photos shared by the Liberal deputy are “false and defamatory,” and said she has asked him to withdraw their publication or face “legal consequences.”
“The information in Mr. Erskine-Smith’s social media post was generated by a fake social media account that I reported to the police in 2018. I also signed a certification confirming these facts,” Robinson said, adding that he was suspending your campaign. to consider your legal options.
“Racism and Islamophobia have no place in the Conservative Party of Canada or in my campaign.”
Since his disavowal of the party, Robinson has deleted his Twitter account and his the website has been suspended. Global News has contacted Robinson for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
Earlier this month, Steven Cotter, a conservative candidate seeking re-election in Central Nova, deleted several online posts calling on Canadians to support the burqa ban and questioning whether newcomers to Canada should receive funding to which, according to him, was at the expense of the army. veterans.
He apologized in a Facebook message on September 5 and promised to reflect on his actions and communicate with his local mosque.
“In the past, I have shared posts on social media without thinking about how these posts can harm or offend others. I have removed these posts and I apologize without reservation, “Cotter said, adding that Islamophobia” has no place “in Nova Scotia.
“I recognize that what they published to me (sic) was not simply hurtful, it was animated with Islamophobic and anti-immigrant tropes.”
But the Liberal Party said O’Toole’s decision to allow Cotter to remain in the party suggests a “worrying trend” by the Conservative leader when it comes to Islamophobia.
“While this candidate is no longer with the Conservatives, Erin O’Toole continues to support her candidate in Nova Scotia, who has made racist comments. At the very least, you should remove your candidate in Central Nova, ”said Alex Wellstead, a spokesman for the Liberals, in an emailed statement to Global News.
“Erin O’Toole wouldn’t even vote to condemn Islamophobia when given the chance, so why should Canadians trust him now?”
Global News reached out to Cotter’s office and the NDP Party for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
– With archives of the Canadian press
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Reference-globalnews.ca