Victoria’s city council voted last month to remove the statue after consulting with Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations about Macdonald’s legacy, particularly his role in building the residential school system in Canada. After a backlash, Victoria mayor Lisa Helps apologized for the lack of consultation and said the statue will be relocated to another public place in the city. In Ontario, Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government offered to take the statue from Victoria and give the statue a good home in Toronto — an offer that was quickly rejected. Views seem to soften as respondents consider a national holiday as part of the country’s efforts at reconciliation. However, support for the holiday again splits down partisan lines, with 59 per cent of Conservative voters rejecting the idea and 65 per cent of Liberal and NDP voters supporting it.

Source: National Post September 06, 2018 07:02 UTC