Federal minister criticizes Manitoba Tory ad that cites rejection of landfill search

Manitoba's Progressive Conservatives came under fire Monday for taking out a newspaper ad that highlights, in part, the province's decision to not search a landfill for the remains of two Indigenous women.

Manitoba's Progressive Conservatives came under fire Monday for taking out a newspaper ad that highlights, in part, the province's decision to not search a landfill for the remains of two Indigenous women.

The full-page ad, on Saturday in the Winnipeg Free Press, touts the governing Tories' promises on a few issues including tax cuts and violent crime. On the decision to not search the Prairie Green Landfill, the words "Stand Firm" appear in large text. In smaller font is the phrase: "For health and safety reasons, the answer on the landfill dig just has to be no."

Marc Miller, a former minister of Crown-Indigenous relations who was shifted to immigration, refugees and citizenship in July, expressed disappointment.

"You know that I considered the decision (to not search the landfill) to be heartless in nature," Miller told reporters in Ottawa.

"It came to my attention last night when I was reading it, and it just seemed on top of being heartless, that it was cruel."

The current minister of Crown-Indigenous relations called the situation "heart-wrenching."

"While we are looking at potential next steps to supporting the search, we encourage all partners to come to the table and work collaboratively with us, including the government of Manitoba, as addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls requires collaboration across all levels of government and must not be politicized," said Gary Anandasangaree.