Veterans advocate says new minister no better than Fantino

After months of calls from veterans to give Veterans Affairs minister Julian Fantino the boot, Stephen Harper has done just that.

Fantino has been demoted to associate minister of Defence, with former Canadian Air Force member and rookie Ontario MP Erin O’Toole taking over the Veterans Affairs file.

NDP Veterans Affairs critic Peter Stoffer is happy to see him off the Veterans Affairs file, but says keeping Fantino on was a calculated move.

“I know why he moved him to another portfolio: in order to protect some seats in the Toronto area, and for fundraising in the election,” he said.

As for the timing, Stoffer said Harper couldn’t demote fantino last year among those calls for resignation.

“You never remove a minister in the heat of battle, you do it when the news is fairly quiet,” he said.

“And obviously the Prime Minister wanted to start the New Year in a more positive way.”

Michael Blais is a veterans advocate, and he’s not sure this is a positive step by Harper.

Like Stoffer, he’s glad to see Fantino out, but he says his replacement is no better.

“We must remember that Erin O’Toole has been the spokesperson for every egregious act that has been brought forward on the Veterans Affairs portfolio since the last two months,” he said.

Stoffer says he hopes to see O’Toole step up and change the way this government has treated veterans.

But Blair says even though O’Toole is a vet, he doesn’t see that happening.

“He’s been against us from day one, and that is problematic,” he said.

“Now, with only two years experience in Ottawa, he’s been appointed to such a serious, bureaucracy-driven department.”

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today