Some Conservative supporters who have commented at this blog wonder why reporters like me can’t turn the “hairdresser” comments directed at Environment Minister Rona Ambrose (left) into the same kind of media circus that Peter MacKay was subjected to over the alleged dog comment.
Well, we stand ready and willing, of course, but those darn Liberals won’t co-operate. Today, during Question Period, we had our Salongate reporters and anchors all primed for action for there was Liberal John Cannis, the MP for Scarborough Centre, heckling Ambrose with comments that sounded like “she’s too busy at the hair salon to do her job.” We could see Tories like John Baird nearly jumping out of their seat as they pointed across the aisle with an accusatory “A-ha!” Here were Liberals engaging in the same kind of sexist behaviour that they had so high-and-mightily accused their Foreign Affairs Minister of engaging in!
But, unfortunately for all of us who would have been keen to pursue Salongate for the next five days, the Liberals refused to play fair. For as soon as Question Period ended, Cannis hopped to his feet and confessed to the House that he had behaved badly and was sorry. “I … made a comment while the Minister of the Environment was speaking, referring to a hair salon. I wish to withdraw those words. If they were offensive and offended anybody, I wish to apologize..”
But a faint glimmer of hope for those who wish this to dominate our news coverage for the next week: Maybe it wasn’t Cannis! Maybe it was his seatmate, Raymond Bonin, the MP from Nickel Belt, who slurred the Environment Minister. At least that’s what Conservative House Leader Rob Nicholson thought, for he rose to his feet immediately after Cannis apologized, to solemnly accuse Bonin of behaving badly.
“The member for Nickel Belt(‘s) … comment was overheard by my colleagues… saying that she should go back to the hair salon, so they were similar to the comments made by the hon. member for Scarborough Centre. These are sexist comments and an insult to everyone in the chamber and I wonder if he would withdraw those comments as well?”
But Bonin, sadly, is no Cannis.
“Mr. Speaker, the member might have heard someone from this area, but I can assure you on my honour that I did not say that.”
And with that, we redeployed our Salongate reporters to the fiscal imbalance.