Critics howl as Gagliano gets new job in Denmark

G&M 16.1.02

OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Jean Chrétien shipped off his scandal-plagued loyalist Alfonso Gagliano to a diplomatic posting in Denmark yesterday, which the opposition said was a blatant attempt to cover up the ethical breaches that tainted his tenure at Public Works Canada.

"Now there will truly be something rotten in the state of Denmark," said Rahim Jaffer, the deputy leader of the Canadian Alliance.

Progressive Conservative Leader Joe Clark said a plum posting should not be awarded to a minister under fire.

"We're not going to let them get away with saying that the miscreants, if they are miscreants, are now out of cabinet," Mr. Clark said.

NDP Leader Alexa McDonough said: "By rewarding Gagliano with an ambassadorship, the Prime Minister is sending a clear message that he approves of the questionable practices that marked his time as a cabinet minister."

Mr. Gagliano had vowed last week to fight off allegations of interference in the internal affairs of Crown corporations that reported to him, but he will not remain in Parliament to keep his word.

Mr. Chrétien said he simply asked Mr. Gagliano to move up his planned retirement from active politics by a year as part of a cabinet shuffle.

No date has been set for a by-election to fill the seat in Mr. Gagliano's riding of St. Leonard in Montreal.

The Prime Minister had stood behind Mr. Gagliano when he was accused by the former chairman of a Crown corporation last week of pushing for the hiring of a friend.

He blamed the media for inflating controversial stories and said Mr. Gagliano had only done his job. "I would like to say thank you to him, because he has been a great example of public service."

Also gone yesterday were two other cabinet members who drew controversy: Maria Minna, who is facing allegations of voting illegally in a Toronto by-election, and Hedy Fry, who caused a furor by stating falsely last year that there were cross burnings going on in British Columbia "as we speak."

Mr. Chrétien denied that he was punishing some ministers for embarrassing the government. "These are all people that I defended in the House of Commons and to whom I said that they would remain in cabinet. But after a while, if you want to make changes, you have to ask some people to leave."

Ms. Minna and Ms. Fry, who unlike Mr. Gagliano are not long-time Chrétien backers, did not receive any appointments and will likely return to the back benches.

Mr. Chrétien had only praise for Mr. Gagliano, calling him a "gentleman" and thanking him for his role in the fight against separatism.