OTTAWA, Ont. — As Nova Scotia’s only Conservative Member of Parliament finds his way around Ottawa, he’s adamant about two things – his first responsibility is to the people of West Nova and the role of opposition is to ask the questions and hold government accountable.
Chris d’Entremont said he’ll be doing both and taking the concerns of his constituents to the nation’s capital.
In a Nov. 5 interview from Ottawa, the MP-elect said he’s already started files on constituency issues brought to him and hopes to have offices set up and staff hired as soon as possible. Right now, he’s a one-man show until his MP budget figures are known.
“Unfortunately, it’s still just a desk of one,” d’Entremont said. “I haven’t necessarily hired anyone yet and I’m still getting my budgets and things lined up here in Ottawa. There’s nothing that’s happening quickly is the issue.”
Leases for former Liberal MP Colin Fraser’s offices in Yarmouth and Middleton came due, and everything – computers, desks, furniture -- is in storage for the moment.
Office locations have not been decided.
“Yarmouth still seems to be the place we want to put one and we’re stilling working on a Valley location – whether that should be Middleton, or Kingston, or Berwick,” he said.
OTTAWA
D’Entremont is getting used to Ottawa and getting a first taste of federal politics.
“We’re going to have our first caucus meeting (Nov. 6). We had training today,” he said. “We haven’t heard too much yet of what the government wants to do or how they want to proceed. I think the next steps for us revolve around getting those budgets figured out, hiring new people. We need to be sworn in. We haven’t got that done yet. The writs are slow coming from Elections Canada.”
In fact, it is not until the writ is delivered to Ottawa that d’Entremont can actually be sworn in.
“So, I’m still technically the MP-elect, not the MP,” he said. “We hear there might be a quick sitting before Christmas, but we’re not sure about that yet.”
As one of four Conservatives in Atlantic Canada, he’s not sure what his role will be, but expects more responsibility on those few Atlantic MPs and it may entail more work.
“I think it does because we speak on behalf of the whole region. I have to speak now as basically a Conservative in all of Nova Scotia as we ask questions and bring issues forward,” he said. “But it also means, even from a political standpoint, that I’m going to be working with the other executives and the other candidates just to figure out how we get ourselves organized for the next election which could happen a lot sooner than normal.”
RESPONSIBILITY
“I think you will see us all with some kind of responsibility. Don’t forget Rob Moore was a minister before, elected official. (John) Williamson was elected before. (Richard) Bragdon has come in with a good majority,” d’Entremont said of the three Conservative MPs elected in New Brunswick. “I think all of us have value to the full team, but there’s also only so many things to dole out. My expectation is low, but hopefully there will be something there for us.”
D’Entremont said there is difference between being an opposition MP or a government MP.
“I think it goes down to the access to the ministers or the decision makers,” he said. “You know of course if you’re in the government side you have a much more direct link to a minister because you get to see them in caucus and you get to see them in different places. For us it’s going to be when the house is sitting we’ll have access to them as much as we can.”
“But I also think that since we’re in a minority situation they’ll be more apt to actually deal with the opposition because they’re going to want certain votes to go their way or there will be some deal making,” he said. “And I think we want to be a part of that deal making as we go forward. There’s things in our individual constituencies and ridings and I think they’ll be a lot more open to allow that to happen.”
BLOC QUEBECOIS
The Bloc Quebecois picked up 32 seats in the Oct. 21 federal election, up 22 from their showing in 2015, and d’Entremont believes that puts a different spin on things.
“I think it does. They said they won’t be talking about sovereignty in this round. So we’ll have to figure out where we can partner with them to keep the government to account,” he said. “It will be interesting to see how they’re dealt with by the government.”
D’Entremont said the Conservatives, with 121 seats must keep government accountable.
“I think that is the main responsibility in a parliamentary sense where we get to ask the questions of government on issues that are important to Canadians,” he said. “And I think in an Atlantic context, or in a Nova Scotia context, there will be questions that government members can’t ask where things will flow through me. So hopefully I can be the voice of the opposition in Nova Scotia. Hopefully we’ll get a lot more credit for some of the things that we need here.”
But his first responsibility is the people of West Nova.
“Absolutely. And hopefully we can talk about the deficiencies that we have. Every day we talked about health care, so we’re trying to find ways, and the federal government should be partnering with provinces on health care,” he said. “We’ll be talking about the farming industry and their access to markets, the effect of the … new NAFTA on their commodities. And, of course, the fishing industry. The fishing industry feels very slighted by this government. Hopefully we’ll be bringing these issues as quickly as we can to the different ministers.”
MESSAGE
“I think we’re going to be listened to, but I think in the political world we’re hoping we can hold on and be government next time, so we’re going to do a lot of work to sell the message of Conservatism across the province and that we’re ready to lead,” d’Entremont said. “I think over the last campaign people weren’t quite sure, so they didn’t give us a full mandate, so we’re going to have to earn that.”
D’Entremont said government’s cabinet is expected to be sworn in on Nov. 20.
“Hopefully at that point Andrew (Scheer) will have made a decision of who the shadow cabinet is going to be,” he said. “So we’ll find out what our actual marching order are going to be.”
