Usually these people aren't allowed to speak publicly as Harper knows they say the worst sort of things. Now age is bad. What next?
Kenyon Wallace
Toronto Star
A prominent Manitoba Conservative MP facing accusations of ageism after she referred to a 68-year-old Liberal MP as having “passed her expiry date” is standing by her statement, saying her remarks were not intended as a slur against seniors.
Saint Boniface MP Shelly Glover raised the ire of both the Liberal Party and Canada’s national association of seniors Monday night after making the controversial comment about Liberal Anita Neville, longtime MP for Winnipeg South Centre, during an interview with Global Television.
“We need some fresh blood, we need some new people who have some new ideas and who are willing to stand up for their constituents. And I’m afraid Ms. Neville has passed her expiry date,” Glover told Global when asked who she thought the Conservative candidate in the riding should be.
The remark immediately sparked calls from the Liberal Party for an apology and accusations of ageism from CARP, a national organization of seniors committed to promoting equitable access to health care and freedom from discrimination.
“Ageism seems to be the final frontier of acceptable discrimination,” CARP vice-president of advocacy, Susan Eng, said in a statement released late Monday night.
“Even when all the parties are actively wooing older voters, a sitting MP thinks this is appropriate . . . Ms. Glover should retract her comments about Ms. Neville and apologize to the voters of her riding and Ms. Neville’s riding for offending and marginalizing a significant portion of their voter base.”
But in a statement issued Tuesday, Glover did not apologize, opting to defend her original comments, saying they referred to Neville’s performance as an MP only.
“My remarks were clear: I was referring to Ms. Neville’s performance as an MP, and only that,” Glover said. “In my opinion, Ms. Neville has ceased to be an effective representative of her constituents. I believe someone new, of any age, with new ideas would be a more effective representative for the people of Winnipeg South Centre.”
In an interview with the Star, Neville called Glover’s decision not to apologize for her “offensive” remarks illustrative of the Conservative Party’s tendency to resort to personal attacks when they run short of ideas and policies.
“While she fired her aim at me, this is really a comment about older workers,” Neville said. “Her response, quite frankly, is shocking. She doesn’t have to apologize to me, but rather to the older men and women who are still working, still productive. Because you’re younger doesn’t necessarily mean you’re smarter.”
Neville also raised the spectre that sexism played a part in motivating Glover to make the comment, noting that the Conservatives recently welcomed Julian Fantino into Parliament “with glee” even though he is older than she is.
After Glover’s original remarks aired, Neville issued a statement pointing out that many Conservative candidates running in the election have longer tenures in public office than her own 10 years, including Diane Ablonczy, Garry Breitkreuz and Stephen Harper.
