It all happened so fast.
Within a matter of hours, Nova Scotia Tory MP Gerald Keddy had called unemployed Nova Scotians “no-good bastards.” Then, a flurry of stories, including calls from his NDP colleague Peter Stoffer, who was on a Maritime radio show, for his resignation as parliamentary secretary to the Minister of International Trade. Then, the apology issued from his office. He regretted his “insensitive comments.”
“In no way did I mean to offend those who have lost their job due to the global recession, nor did I mean to suggest that anyone who is unemployed is not actively looking for employment,” he said.
Mr. Keddy’s troubles began with a story in the Halifax Chronicle-Herald today about migrant workers. He said that the market gardeners in the Annapolis Valley would go broke if not for migrant workers in the province. “Nova Scotians won’t do it – all those no-good bastards sitting on the sidewalk in Halifax that can’t get work,” he said.
Mr. Stoffer heard about the comments and was unimpressed.
“It’s beyond the pale,” the affable New Democrat said today in a telephone interview. “It is beyond that pale that a parliamentary secretary … could say that.”
Many of those so-called “no-good bastards,” Mr. Stoffer suggests, likely suffer from mental health issues. He said at the Commons committee on veterans affairs today, he heard that many veterans have mental health issues, too. “They end up on the street. What are they – lazy, no-good bastards? What the hell is he thinking?”
Mr. Stoffer said that if Mr. Keddy wanted “to have a serious discussion about migrant workers in Canada, wouldn’t it be great if we could possibly encourage Canadians to accept some of that work. That’s a fair and honest debate.”
So, is this the end of the Keddy affair? Maybe not. Mr. Stoffer said an apology really wouldn’t cut it but a resignation would. We’ll see.
(Photo: Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
