Quebec MP Steven Blaney holds up the sealskin folder he carries daily. (Helene Bernard/Levis-Bellechasse Bureau)A sealskin-covered folder given to a Quebec MP by Iqaluit Mayor Elisapee Sheutiapik has made national headlines and even moved other politicians to ask where they can get their own.
Sheutiapik gave the portfolio to Quebec Conservative MP Steven Blaney a couple of years ago while she was attending a political event in Quebec City.
The folder resurfaced Sept. 16 when anti-sealing protesters interrupted question period at the House of Commons. At that point, Blaney stood up in the Commons and held up the folder as a show of support for the Canadian seal hunt.
The Lévis-Bellechasse MP's gesture garnered applause and prompted a rare display of solidarity from the opposition benches. Some MPs then asked him where they could get a similar accessory.
"All the House … stood for this, I would say, principle of democracy, and also for the principle of defending the seal industry," Blaney told CBC News. "Since then, I received many calls and requests to get those great portfolios."
Blaney, who said he proudly carries his sealskin folder every day and recently wrote to Sheutiapik to ask how other members can get their own folder.
"When there's a high-profile visit or meeting, we usually give them these sealskin portfolios as a 'thank you' and we also realize that these are gifts that are not going to be forgotten. And here's a prime example," Sheutiapik said.
Blaney said some MPs have suggested presenting sealskin folders as gifts whenever a European parliamentarian comes to Ottawa.
The European Union banned the import of seal products from Canada and other sealing countries earlier this year. The ban exempts seal items derived from traditional Inuit hunts, but sealers in Nunavut have expressed concern that it would still hurt their livelihoods.
