ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — David Maher
The Telegram
Surgeon Andrew Furey says his reason for wanting to be the 14th premier of Newfoundland and Labrador is simple.
“I want to make a difference. I know the province is facing some tough times right now and I want to make a difference now. I think it’s important for people to step up from different career paths, and I think I have something to offer,” said Furey.
“Frankly, I need to be able to look my children and my children’s children in the eye and tell them I did everything I could during these tough times for Newfoundland and Labrador.”
Furey announced his candidacy for the Liberal Leadership at the Alt Hotel in St. John’s on Tuesday evening, to a crowd full of familiar faces.
The entire Liberal caucus (less Andrew Parsons, who is still dealing with personal matters) was on hand for the announcement. Joining provincial Liberals for the event were MPs Ken MacDonald and Churence Rogers, former MP Nick Whalen, and former MHAs Betty Parsley, John Finn and Neil King.
The campaign team features campaign manager John Hogan, who co-chaired the Liberals' 2019 election campaign, along with Peter Miles, the current economic adviser to Premier Dwight Ball.
Miles says he has taken a leave of absence from the Premier’s Office to support Furey’s campaign.
Eilanda Anderson, former executive director of the Liberal party, is a communications manager for the campaign.
Furey declined to get into details of policy proposals he will take into his campaign, saying he will make his positions known during the month-long leadership campaign.
“I think everyone realizes the budget crunch that we’re under. My top proity is going to be to get in there, get fully up to speed on the fiscal situation of the province, get a better understanding of the economic pressures, upward or downward, and the levers that have been pulled or not pulled,” he said.
“Then, make the best, evidence-based decisions for the citizens of the province.”
Furey, an orthopedic surgeon, founder of Team Broken Earth and son of Senate Speaker George Furey, resides in Portugal Cove-St. Philip's with his wife, Allison, and three children, Maggie, Rachel and Mark.
He founded Team Broken Earth in 2010, co-founded the Dollar A Day Foundation in 2018 and holds a medical degree from Memorial University, as well as a diploma in organizational leadership from Oxford University.
Premier Dwight Ball says he has concerns over the Furey campaign's apparent access to emails on the Liberal party's voting list.
“I would like to see the party put an investigation in place around the emails that were sent around the province. I think this needs to be investigated. I think people in our province need answers. I think the party, from what I gather, will be forthcoming in putting that investigation in place,” Ball said.
“We have a responsibility when we collect data for people that the data is used for the purpose it’s collected. I think the party will see the source of those emails, where they came from, what the source was and why they were used in this particular way. These are questions that I think people of this province are asking.”
Ball says he has made his opinion known to the party executive, but will not order the investigation as outgoing leader of the Liberal party.
Furey says he wants a fair race and will work with an investigation, if launched.
“When I discussed with my team, there was a great deal of excitement, and they dipped into their contact lists and sent out an email,” he said.
“The party’s already looked at this, said there was no data breach. I’m happy to help them in any way, shape or form. I want a fair race. I don’t want anyone to have their foot on the scale for me.”
Other concerns about the Liberal leadership process are around a lack of transparency. Currently, the party is not requiring disclosure of donors or the amount each donor gives, or implementing a spending cap on the leadership campaign.
Furey says he will overstep the expectations of the Liberal party on transparency.
“I plan to disclose. Not only do I plan to disclose, I plan to put my own spending limit on this of $250,000, which as I understand is well below what people have spent in the past,” he said.
“At the end of this campaign I plan to release an audited statement of all the names of the donors and what they donated.”
Furey’s only proclaimed opponent, former deputy minister of health John Abbott, is expected to announce his candidacy Thursday.
@DavidMaherNL
