The listeriosis outbreak that has killed 13 people didn't take long to become an election issue as Liberal Leader Stephane Dion demanded the resignation of federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz Thursday.
With an election call expected Sunday, Dion said that Ritz should be fired for misleading Canadians about fiscal cuts in government inspections at food processing plants.
Recently the federal government changed the way meat inspectors work, with inspectors spending 50 per cent of their time reviewing paperwork.
"Under the circumstances, because this change (to the food inspection regime) has been covered up, the minister can not stay the minister," Dion told a news conference at the end of a two-day party retreat in Winnipeg. "If it's a good policy they should have been proud to show it to Canadians, but they did their best to hide it to Canadians and parliamentarians."
But Ritz told a Thursday news conference there have been no cuts to food inspections.
"In fact, we added resources, both in manpower and money," he said.
Harper announced Wednesday that there would be an independent inquiry into the outbreak.
"There will be accountability," Ritz said on CTV's Mike Duffy Live Thursday.
Ritz said the Liberals could not point to anything in deserving of his resignation.
"I stand by what was said, and what was done," he said.
While the NDP Leader Jack Layton criticized the Tory's handling of the outbreak, the party also went after the Liberals' management of food inspections during their time in office.
"By this standard, Mr. Dion might as well fire former Liberal agriculture minister Wayne Easter," NDP campaign spokesperson Brad Lavigne said.
"The seeds to this deadly crisis were sown by the Liberals."
Thirteen deaths have been attributed to the outbreak of Listeriosis, which has been traced back to a Maple Leaf plant in Toronto. There have been 38 confirmed cases ion total.
