OTTAWA, October 15, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) – News media report that the Alliance and Progressive Conservative Parties have reached a deal Wednesday on their many times on and off merger. The last issue of how delegates are to be chosen for a leadership conventions has been settled. CBC reports that “the leader of the merged party would be chosen on March 21, adopting the method used by the Conservatives in 1998, giving equal weight to ridings.” The name of the new party will be the Conservative Party. CBC also states that the merger still has to be ratified by the caucus, by the executive and by the general membership of each party by Dec. 12.
Of serious concern to the social conservative backbone of the Alliance are already common reports that former Ontario Premier Mike Harris will seek and likely win the leadership. CTV’s Mike Duffy says “The buzz is that Mike Harris will run for the leadership and I would say that despite the fact that Stephen Harper has a huge organization and Peter MacKay has youth and freshness on his side…the Canadian Alliance wants a way to break through in Ontario.”
Harris has proven to be no friend of social conservatives in Ontario and followed a consistent authoritarian approach to make sure that none of his MPPs were allowed to advance any serious actions on ‘divisive’ issues. Also, completely contradicting that policy, under Harris, gay activists were appointed to key positions and gay agenda laws were undemocratically rammed through the legislature. The Harris government was notable for its almost ruthless top-down decision-making process, in stark contrast to the Alliance’s emphasis on democratic process. For many months, as previously reported by LifeSite, rumours have been circulating that the long-term game plan of the political elites was to put Mike Harris in as the new leader of a merged party, with Stephen Harper gladly moving over to take over Ralph Klein’s job as Alberta Premier. CTV reports that MacKay and Harper will hold a joint news conference on Thursday morning to provide more details about the merger deal. See CBC and CTV stories: https://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1066221107562_48///?hub=TopStories https://www.cbc.ca/stories/2003/10/15/unitetheright031015