Former Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole to Resign as MP

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole speaks during a news conference responding to the federal government’s COVID-19 response, on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Jan. 6, 2022. The Canadian Press/Justin Tang

Former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole has announced he will not be seeking re-election and will resign as MP at the end of the spring session of Parliament.

“It has been the honour of a lifetime to serve my community in Parliament and to also have the privilege to serve the country as a Minister and as Leader of the Opposition,” he said in a statement on March 31.

“I am thankful to the people of Durham for their trust.”

O'Toole said he was fortunate to have been able to advance “critically important” issues like veterans’ mental health, military preparedness, and Canada’s Arctic sovereignty while in government. He said he will remain the MP for Durham until the end of Parliament’s spring session.

“I am a proud Conservative and had the unique privilege to lead our party amid a challenging time for our country. The Conservative party is the party of Confederation and I know it will return to government offering the hope and ideas our country so desperately needs,” he said.

O'Toole, a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, was first elected to Parliament in a 2012 byelection. In former prime minister Stephen Harper’s government, he served as parliamentary secretary to the minister for international trade, and then as veterans affairs minister.

He ran for the leadership of the Conservative party in 2017, placing third. He successfully ran again in 2020, beating former cabinet minister Peter MacKay. He would lead his party through the COVID-19 pandemic until being ousted in February 2022, when a majority of his caucus voted to remove him during a secret ballot.

While leading the party, O'Toole faced issues within his party over concerns that he flip-flopped on various policy issues.

In September 2021, he reversed a Conservative platform promise to overturn a ban on 1,500 makes and models of what the Liberal government called “military-grade weapons.”

In April 2021, after previously having pledged that the party would repeal the federal carbon tax and not introduce any future national carbon tax or cap-and-trade scheme, he said the Conservatives would introduce their own version of a carbon tax.

Issues surrounding mandatory COVID-19 vaccination also haunted O'Toole in the run-up to the September 2021 election. He campaigned on allowing for rapid testing in place of vaccination, a policy position heavily criticized by the Liberals. At the time, several Conservative MPs also refused to share their COVID vaccination status, despite it being a requirement to enter Parliament.

After the Conservatives failed to win the 2021 election, an internal review of O’Toole’s leadership was conducted, led by Conservative MP Bob Benzen.

“Mr. O’Toole campaigned in the leadership as a principled Conservative voice that could unite the party. However, since Mr. O’Toole assumed the position of leader there have been numerous instances of flip-flops and questionable judgment,” Benzen said.

O'Toole vowed to defend his leadership position, declaring on Jan 31, 2022, that he was “not going anywhere,” but following the 73–45 vote to remove him, he resigned as leader on Feb. 2.

Poilievre Thanks O'Toole for His Service

In a statement released on March 31 following O'Toole’s announcement, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the former Conservative leader would be sorely missed by his constituents. “Erin can leave his role as their Member of Parliament knowing that his community is far better off because of his years of sacrifice and service for the people of Durham.”

Poilievre applauded O'Toole for holding the Liberal government to account and “fighting against their reckless spending and divisive politics” as leader of the party.

“I truly wish Erin all the best in the next chapter of his life, and I would like to thank him for his service to both the Conservative Party of Canada and all Canadians,” Poilievre said.

Conservative MP Gérard Deltell, who served as House leader of the Official Opposition from September 2020 to February 2022 under Erin O‘Toole, said it was “an honour and a privilege” to have served with O’Toole. “Thank you for your 10 years of political commitment to the country and our party. To you and your wonderful family, my best wishes.”

Conservative MP and shadow Defence Minister Michael Chong told the National Post that O'Toole made a tremendous contribution to Canada.

“As Conservative leader, he took the party through a difficult time of transition as we head towards government,” he said. “I know he’ll continue to play an important role in providing advice as we continue to build a Conservative party ready for government.”