The union representing Canada's food scientists and inspectors issued its own call on Friday for Stephen Harper to fire federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, saying he has "repeatedly disappointed" those who work for him during the listeriosis crisis.
The head of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada, which represents 1,800 food inspection and health protection workers, described Ritz's jokes about the crisis linked to 17 deaths across the country as "the last straw."
"Crisis requires real leadership, and Mr. Ritz is clearly not fit to lead," the union's president, Michèle Demers, said in a release Friday.
The controversy continued to dominate the Oct. 14 federal election campaign for a second day on Friday as opposition leaders stepped up their attacks on the Conservatives.Harper, speaking Friday at a campaign stop in Quebec, again dismissed calls to fire Ritz, saying the minister "clearly did not intend to make any such comments publicly and has thoroughly apologized."
He also said his government has committed to a full inquiry into the outbreak to ensure similar events do not happen again.
But federal NDP Leader Jack Layton countered that Canadians are facing a "food crisis" while the Conservatives have failed to act.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Agree or disagree, I would love to hear from anyone who visits the site