I was home for the holidays, trying my best not to think of politics. Then my blackberry starting hopping around like a freshly landed trout. Loyola Sullivan was quitting as minister of Finance and as the MHA for Ferryland.
Sullivan says he is leaving for personal reasons and will pursue opportunities in the private sector. He should have no shortage of options. But options are something that the premier is quickly running out of. During his first term, Danny Williams has lost Sullivan, Beth Marshall and Ed Byrne from cabinet. They all left at different times and for very different reasons. But each departure represents a significant talent bleed from the government's front benches. Sullivan, Marshall and Byrne were held out as the cornerstones of a strong cabinet. They would be the pillars of good, competent government for the life of the Williams government. Now they are all gone.
My guess is that Sullivan isn't done with politics. He is the federal Conservative Party's number one target for candidate recruitment in the next election. With Norm Doyle expected to retire, Sullivan could run in St. John's East and likely win that seat. But a source quite close to Sullivan says that "isn't in the cards."
Already there is buzz that Sullivan is leaving because of a strained relationship with the premier. It seemed that there was some disagreement between the two men on Williams' approach to federal-provincial relations. Sullivan apparently didn't share the premier's anxiety over pending changes to equalization. But he did share the premier's goal of protecting the gains made in the new Atlantic Accord. Again, people close to Sullivan insist the relationship with the premier was strong.
This likely isn't the last high-profile tory to say goodbye. The premier is asking his people to commit early in the new year to running in the 2007 election. As those committments are sought and given, expect the cabinet to change even more as the premier freshens up his government before a trip to the polls.
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