Health minister’s silence keeps heckling allegation on life-support By: Tom Brodbeck Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Tuesday, Apr. 4, 2023

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/04/2023 (1144 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s a reason elected officials almost always apologize in the legislative assembly after blurting out something inappropriate or offensive across the chamber floor: it’s about showing respect for the institution.

MLAs trade barbs almost daily in the house, accusing each other of any number of perceived failings, from allegations of government mismanagement and misuse of tax dollars to not caring about the welfare of Manitobans.

It’s a hostile environment (and probably one of the reasons few are willing to run for public office).

However, there is a line in the sand MLAs cannot, or should not, cross.

When they do, they are asked to withdraw their comments if they’re deemed unparliamentary by the Speaker of the house. MLAs almost always comply.

MLAs trade barbs almost daily in the house, accusing each other of any number of perceived failings, from allegations of government mismanagement and misuse of tax dollars to not caring about the welfare of Manitobans.

When they don’t — which is rare — they’re ejected from the chamber for the remainder of the day. It has happened a few times in recent decades but is the exception rather than the norm.

Those are the rules of engagement in a civilized, properly functioning legislative assembly. It’s designed to ensure the legislature has legitimacy and the ability to maintain order in society.

The worst comments by MLAs are usually made when their microphones are off, when they blurt out insults across the floor aimed at political opponents.

When James Allum and Andrew Swan, NDP MLAs at the time, heckled female members of the government in 2016, for refusing to support an opposition bill, it was difficult to prove.

The duo targeted female Tory MLAs as they stood to vote against the NDP bill but did not heckle male counterparts. The NDP caucus, at first, denied the accusation.

It wasn’t until NDP MLA Wab Kinew (not yet party leader) confirmed what happened that the MLAs apologized.

The same year, the Tories falsely accused then-NDP MLA Rob Altemeyer of making an offensive comment in the house. They claimed, wrongly, he shouted “Take your pants off” to Rochelle Squires, who was sport, culture and heritage minister at the time.

An audio recording released by the Speaker dispelled the allegation. What Altemeyer actually said was: “Gonna take a pass on it,” in reference to something then-premier Brian Pallister had uttered.

Squires later did the right thing and apologized in the house for the false accusation.

Gary Filmon, Tory premier from 1988 to 1999, threatened to kick then-NDP MLA Tim Sale’s lights out during an afternoon sitting of the legislature. It wasn’t recorded in Hansard, the official transcript of house proceedings. However, Filmon admitted it the next day, and apologized.

Most recently, Tory Health Minister Audrey Gordon has been accused of suggesting the NDP paid off nurses who quit the Health Sciences Centre’s sexual assault examiners program.

The minister allegedly made the comment in the house March 23, according to NDP MLA Uzoma Asagwara. Seven of the program’s 13 nurses quit last month.

The insinuation from Gordon — if she truly said it — was the NDP paid nurses to resign so the party could score political points from the ensuing hardship those resignations caused.

It would be a serious charge for a minister of the Crown to make.

Accusing a party of paying off nurses to resign from any program would likely invite a lawsuit if it were said outside the chamber, where members are not protected from civil litigation.

There are a lot of snide comments that fly back and forth in the chamber, but that kind of accusation would certainly cross the line.

However, there is no proof Gordon said it. If she did, it wasn’t recorded in Hansard.

Accusing a party of paying off nurses to resign from any program would likely invite a lawsuit if it were said outside the chamber, where members are not protected from civil litigation.

There is probably no way of proving it one way or the other, unless other MLAs who may have heard it speak up or if Gordon herself acknowledged it.

So far, Gordon has said very little publicly about the incident. Her staff has sent out a statement, saying she doesn’t comment on hearsay.

Meantime, Gordon hasn’t outright denied the charge, either. That’s troubling.

If she didn’t say it, one would think the minister would state publicly and unequivocally the allegations are false and malicious. She hasn’t done that.

At the very least, the minister has an obligation to clear the air and answer questions on the issue. Her credibility as a minister of the Crown is on the line.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca