Why are Conservatives privately slagging Erin O’Toole? Look no further than the polls

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This article was published 17/03/2021 (2023 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA–Erin O’Toole is preaching unity as his detractors within the Conservative Party of Canada whisper division.

Sources close to O’Toole say they are unconcerned with the spate of negative headlines and rabble rousing within the ranks as he heads into his first policy convention as leader this weekend.

Nevertheless, there is an acknowledgment among O’Toole’s inner circle that the call is coming from inside the house — that elements within their own party are seeking to undermine the new leader, even as the possibility of an election looms.

“If we were five or 10 points ahead in the polls, you wouldn’t be hearing any of it,” a senior Conservative source told the Star in an interview Wednesday.

But the Conservatives are not five or 10 points ahead.

Since O’Toole took over the party leadership in August, most national polls have put the party behind the governing Liberals — despite criticism, led by the Conservatives, about the government’s rollout of COVID-19 vaccines and its economic plans, or lack thereof.

And that, O’Toole’s people say, is why members of his caucus and “senior Conservative sources” are anonymously criticizing his leadership in the media.

The Star has previously reported that some Conservative members of Parliament are concerned about the party’s direction, and are unsure about the pitch they’ll be making on voters’ doorsteps when the inevitable election comes. Other MPs voiced concern that O’Toole would embrace a price on carbon — a step that would go against party orthodoxy — even as the Conservative leader publicly denied the speculation.

The Star granted anonymity to sources within the party so they can speak frankly about internal issues.

On Wednesday, the National Post reported the latest allegation against O’Toole — that he and his national campaign chair, Fred DeLorey, had barred former leadership rival Peter MacKay from running under the Conservative banner.

One source confirmed the Post’s reporting to the Star on Wednesday, while a senior O’Toole source vehemently denied it.

It is almost beside the point if the story is accurate. If MacKay wanted to run, he could — all he needed to do was publicly declare his intentions, and O’Toole’s team would have little reason to reject him.

The larger issue for the Conservatives is how willing the party elites are to talk about internal divisions.

One source close to O’Toole waved off that concern, saying the party has dealt with such internal disagreements since its inception. Stephen Harper himself once said that if you don’t have factions, you’re not a real conservative party.

“The only thing the public sees when they read this is, ‘These people don’t have their act together.’ They don’t care about the factional stuff,” the source said.

“They just think, ‘You don’t have your act together and why would I vote for that?’”

The source acknowledged that it’s a problem if Canadians perceive the Conservatives as unable to get their own house in order, but are asking voters to put them in charge of the post-pandemic recovery.

A second Conservative source said the party is “preparing, not campaigning.” In other words, those close to O’Toole believe the real electoral fight has yet to begin, and they’re spending more time preparing for that fight than putting out fires in the media.

“He’s been leader for six months in the middle of the pandemic. I think there’s been a lot of hot air out there,” the source said.

“We execute, we don’t talk about it,” the source added. “We have been preparing, we have not been campaigning, and we are good at what we do.”

The Conservatives will gather for a virtual policy convention this weekend, where traditional party concerns — income tax review, revising military procurement, assisting veterans and energy policy — will be debated.

O’Toole is scheduled to address the convention in a keynote speech on Friday night. The content of that speech is a closely guarded secret.

But it will be the rookie leader’s first chance to address the party’s faithful as a whole since his early morning acceptance speech on Aug. 23. It’s a good guess that party unity will be a prominent theme.

Alex Boutilier is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @alexboutilier