Mulcair focuses attacks on Thibeault during Sudbury visit

Federal NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair was in town Friday, the latest in a series of high-profile politicians to visit Sudbury as the parties battle to win the Feb. 5 byelection.

Mulcair joined Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath and Sudbury candidate Suzanne Shawbonquit for a tour of the Red Oak Villa retirement home, meeting residents before talking with reporters.

The campaign has personal significance for Mulcair, since polls show Shawbonquit is in a close race against a former member of his caucus, Glenn Thibeault, who left the NDP in December to run provincially. And Mulcair was blunt when questions turned to the former Sudbury MP.

“There's no question that I want the people of Sudbury to know what happened,” Mulcair said. “I was there. I was talking to Glenn Thibeault 36 hours before, citing 'family reasons,' he had to step down as caucus chair.”

Despite what Thibeault has said about being unhappy for a long time before he left, Mulcair said he didn't express any unhappiness to him or those close to him in the party, making his decision a shock.

“He kept it to himself,” he said, of Thibeault. “He got himself elected chair of the caucus, I had weekly meetings with him and, gall darn it, he never had a chance to mention it.”

He also took issue with some of the reasons Thibeault has given for leaving the party, such as top-down decision making and the way the party changed after former leader Jack Layton passed away. Mulcair said both reasons ring hollow.

“He said one of the problems is all the decisions were being made at the top,” he said. “Once we stopped laughing, we had to remind him he was caucus chair. So if the decisions were being taken at the top, he was awful darn close to the top.

“He also tried to use Jack Layton's legacy as some sort of an excuse for his behaviour. It was interesting to see Jack Layton's mother say her son would have been ashamed at his behaviour, and I thought that was quite a strong statement.”

While unavailable for an interview Friday afternoon, Thibeault released a statement saying the issues he cares most about are handled at the provincial level – health care, education and infrastructure.

“I’m running to be the MPP for Sudbury because I want to take my knowledge of the issues, and the skills and experience that I have gained as MP, and put them to work where I know I can make a bigger impact on our community — at Queen’s Park,” the statement said.

“I was drawn to Premier (Kathleen) Wynne’s message that government can be a force for good in people’s lives, and that our best days are ahead of us if we work together to address the challenges we face.

“Kathleen Wynne has a proven track record of working with anyone who has good ideas. As a member of her team, I know that when I speak up on behalf of my constituents, I will be heard — Sudbury will be heard, and the government will act.”

But Mulcair accused Thibeault of thinking of himself, not his community.

“Glenn Thibeault would have people believe he's willing to risk his career for the sake of the community. In fact, what people should know is he's willing to sacrifice the community for the sake of his career.”

Shawbonquit said having the support of such high-profile New Democrats makes a huge difference to her campaign.

“It's amazingly overwhelming to be embraced by the New Democrats and the whole family,” she said. “It's an amazing team and I'm very proud.”

When asked whether her campaign is only focused on attacking Thibeault, she said her focus has been on the issues in the riding.

“We go out every day, we canvass at every door and we are focused on the issues,” Shawbonquit said. “And that's where the priority is right now, and it has been since we began.”

Mulcair urged voters to elect her – and to send another New Democrat to the House of Commons in the fall federal election.

“Suzanne Shawbonquit will continue to be there long after this election,” he said. “We'll continue to fight for the people of Sudbury. She'll fight in Queen's Park. We're going to continue the fight in Ottawa.

“Suzanne Shawbonquit is the future for Sudbury. I couldn't be prouder than to be standing here beside her giving her my full support.”