Ontario NDP removes long-time member from caucus, bars him from running in election

Queen's Park in Toronto is seen on Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath has kicked long-time member Paul Miller out of caucus and will not let him run under the party banner in the June election over what he describes as a "false allegation."

Miller, who has represented Hamilton-East Stoney Creek since 2007, said he is consulting with a lawyer on legal avenues to pursue.

Neither Miller nor the party would disclose what is at the heart of the dispute. A party source said it is something from the last four years and is not a police matter.

A brief statement Thursday from Horwath said she made the decision after the party concluded its pre-election vetting process for Miller.

"I've been informed of the new information uncovered during that vetting process, and find it to be clearly unacceptable," she wrote.

Miller disputes the NDP's finding.

"It's a false allegation that they've created and it will be brought to the attention of the public in due course," he said in an interview.

"I think they want to change the face of the party and move in a different direction with different candidates. I think they're getting rid of the old guys."

The party did not comment on Miller's claims.

Miller noted that it's "rather unusual for a four-time incumbent to be removed a few weeks before an election."

He acknowledged that any legal avenues he chooses to pursue wouldn't happen quickly enough to get him on the June 2 ballot for the NDP, but he said he has "options" such as running as an independent or joining another party.

"I can tell you that I will be on the ballot in some form," he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 17, 2022.