OTTAWA — Amita Kuttner, the new interim Green leader, says they will be ready to take tough disciplinary action to deal with party members who “have been at each other’s throats.”
The astrophysicist, who is nonbinary, says they want to “listen and love” to “heal” the party, which has been riven by infighting and accusations of racism and antisemitism.
At their first news conference as interim leader, Kuttner says they want to start a process of “regrowth,” saying the Greens’ style would appeal to people seeking an alternative to mainstream politics, as well as solutions to the climate crisis.
They called Canada a colonial and genocidal state.
Kuttner was appointed after former leader Annamie Paul resigned, saying leading the Greens had been the worst period of her life.
The interim leader will hold the post until the party elects its next leader, and Kuttner has ruled out going for the permanent job as they are going through a medical transition.
Elizabeth May, the former leader of the Greens, will continue to lead the parliamentary cohort of two Green MPs, who say they won’t support the Trudeau government’s throne speech.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2021.
The Canadian Press