Morrice, who represents the southern Ontario of Kitchener Center and was first elected to the seat in 2021, said in a statement to CBC News on Monday that he is focused on his constituents and plans to “continue to put them first.” “While I am disappointed by the infighting, I still believe that I am a Greens MP who is best placed to support my riding’s priorities and I have no plans to leave the party. candidates, I hope for the continued renewal of the party.” , his statement said. “The Green Party faces challenges, including tackling systemic issues to ensure the safety of staff and volunteers, rebuilding financial stability and regaining the trust of members,” he added. “With the existential threat of the climate crisis, I believe the party and the new leader should also focus on the issues Canadians care about most – we have no time to waste.”
The party president resigns
The party has faced internal strife ahead of the 2021 federal election. Annami Paul resigned from the leadership in the days leading up to the election and cited internal party politics that included calls for a vote of confidence and a leadership review during the campaign. In December 2021, the party said it was looking at ways to cut costs to avoid insolvency, and that included potentially closing its Ottawa headquarters. Then, earlier this month, on Sept. 3, during an online event organized by the party, a presentation slide featuring interim leader Amita Kuttner misunderstood the party leader, said a group that includes current MPs, aspiring leaders and Kuttner. Kuttner, 30, is non-binary and uses the pronouns they. The “solidarity statement” dated September 6 said Kuttner’s gender abuse was “deeply troubling” to the transitional leader and party members and also that it was “not a slip of the tongue”. Green Party interim leader Amita Kuttner speaks to the media in Ottawa on December 1, 2021. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press) Kuttner’s racially inappropriate behavior “was the latest in a series of similar patterns of behavior that Kuttner has encountered throughout his tenure,” the Sept. 6 statement said. “When such incidents are repeated, they form a pattern of harassment that we, the signatories, will not tolerate, regardless of intent,” the statement said. “This can’t happen again.” The statement also said it appreciated the immediate apology from Green Party chair Lorraine Reckmans and leadership contest co-chair Natalie Ott, and that they were not responsible for Kutner’s ill-treatment. Then over the weekend, Rekmans announced she was resigning from the party. In her resignation letter, Reckmans, the party’s first Indigenous president, described her time as party president as “tumultuous”. She said she hoped to help the party “rise from the ashes” after the 2021 federal election and that at the start of the leadership race, she felt challenged by leadership contenders and the interim leader that “her governance as president it had no effect. “ “I’m sensitive to these criticisms that sound like accusations of failure,” Reckmans said. “We were on the verge of something great. Now I see that, for me, the dream is dead.”
“Very serious threat”
It emerged on Sunday that a staff member in Morris’ office had sent a letter to the party’s federal council. Elizabeth May and Mike Morris are the two sitting Green Party MPs in the House of Commons. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press) In the letter, Morrice and former leader and current Saanich-Niss Gulf MP Elizabeth May warned they were both “prepared to leave the party and sit as an independent” if the party chose to suspend the leadership race or close the party’s headquarters in Ottawa. The letter from May and Morris said that doing either would “cause irreparable damage to the party”. Reckmans confirmed that several councilors received an email from Morris’ staff and called it a “very serious threat”. “I really think it’s a serious offence [party] rules,” Reckmans said. All this comes as the party searches for a new leader. There are six candidates, four of whom are dual candidates, so they will advocate for the party if they win. Those vying for leadership are:
Sarah Gabrielle Baron. Simon Gnocchini-Messier. May with Jonathan Pedneault. Anna Keenan and Chad Walcott.
In a joint statement on Monday, Keenan and Walcott said there should be an internal investigation into what happened to Kuttner, that “our party needs to put its house in order,” but they also wanted to “focus our energy on external issues.” this matters to Canadians.” In an interview, Pedno said the Green Party is “much bigger than any of the leadership contenders, than any president and then the two MPs. It is full of members who have kept this party alive through many crises.”
