Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan MP Tom Lukiwski announced his endorsement of Peter MacKay in the federal Conservative leadership race on Monday, May 11.聽
鈥淚 have known and worked with Peter for a long time, since the reunification of the Conservative Party and I regard him as a friend and trusted colleague. After many long one-on-one discussions with Peter, I have concluded that he is the best choice to lead the Conservative Party into the next election,鈥� said Lukiwski.聽
鈥淚 have two main reasons for supporting Peter. First, I feel that he has all the skills needed to be an excellent prime minister. He is knowledgeable, experienced, dignified and has excellent communications skills. Compared to the amateurish leadership of our current prime minister, Peter has a solid policy background, having worked as a Crown prosecutor and business lawyer. Unlike Trudeau, Peter will not merely be the spokesman for the government 鈥� he will be a real decision-maker.鈥澛�
鈥淭he second and perhaps most important reason I am supporting Peter is that I believe he will be a unifier for the Conservative Party. As a big tent party, the Conservative Party embraces conservatives with many viewpoints,鈥� Lukiwski said. 鈥淔or example, there are a number of issues, particularly social issues, on which Peter and I agree to disagree. However, Peter has assured me that, under his leadership, the Conservative Party will not restrict private members鈥� bills or votes of conscience on social issues.鈥澛�
鈥淲hile I am endorsing Peter, I firmly believe that the most important principle of this leadership race is party loyalty and unity. No matter who wins or loses the leadership race, it will be my pleasure and honour to serve the next Conservative leader, whoever he or she may be. To ensure that we can build a future for Canada based on conservative principles, I would urge all Conservative members to take the same approach.鈥�
