O'Toole ousts Batters, says 'necessary' for Conservative caucus unity

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole is defending his decision to remove Sen. Denise Batters from his caucus after she started a petition calling for an expedited review of his leadership, calling it 'necessary,' while Batters said the move 'speaks volumes' about O'Toole.

“You don't want to make that decision, but really she made it for herself,” he said Wednesday, on his way into a caucus meeting focused on preparing for the return of Parliament.

“We have to have all members of the team focused at that, and it was a necessary decision to make for the well-being of our caucus, of our Parliament, and of the country,” he said, defending his decision to remove Batters but not other caucus members who have spoken critically of O’Toole’s 2021 election performance.

“We've had two very, very good national caucus meetings, some going as long as six hours and we've united on our way forward as a team. People that are now allowing their frustrations and their own personal agendas, or issues on the pandemic to interfere with our progress are not part of the team,” O’Toole said.

In a statement issued Wednesday morning, Batters said she is, and “always will be a Conservative,” but said that the current leader “cannot tolerate criticism.”