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Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday October 2, 2019

Andrew Scheer’s experience in the insurance industry: ‘6 or 7 months’ 

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has talked for years about his private sector experience as an insurance broker, but under questioning Monday, he admitted he only worked in the industry for “six or seven months.”

CBC News asked him exactly how long he’d worked in a Regina insurance office.

“I worked from approximately spring to some time in the fall,” he said, saying he’d have to go back and check his personal records for the exact dates.

CBC News also asked Scheer to clarify exactly what his role was in this office.

He said his job was “supporting the whole team … answering questions from customers and clients and doing preparatory work.” He added that he would also explain and pass on information to people coming into the office.

When CBC News suggested this meant he’d never actually worked as a broker, Scheer said that although he (eventually) received his accreditation under the Canadian Accredited Insurance Broker Program, “at this particular office, the licensed brokers finalized all the transactions.”

Conrad Shenher, who owned the insurance firm where Scheer worked and is now retired, told CBC News in a phone call that he doesn’t remember what Scheer’s duties were because it was so long ago.

In response to an earlier question from The Canadian Press, Scheer had said “I left before obtaining the full licence but I did receive that accreditation for general insurance.”

He also said he had many different jobs before being elected, including waiting tables.

When Scheer ran for the leadership of the Conservative Party, the biographical information on his website said he “passed the Canadian Accredited Insurance Broker program and began his working career in the insurance industry in Regina.”

That’s the opposite order of events Scheer now describes.

Derek Lothian, chief executive officer of the Insurance Brokers Association of Saskatchewan, confirmed that Scheer completed a course with the association “that would form part of the eligibility requirements for licensing.”

As of Monday afternoon, Scheer’s biography on the Conservative Party’s web page continued to say that “before entering public life, Andrew worked in the private sector as an insurance broker.” (CBC)