Caroline Mulroney has faced sexist attacks that are “beyond the pale” in recent days over her role as attorney general and the government’s use of the notwithstanding clause, says the minister responsible for women’s issues.

Lisa MacLeod told reporters that from Queen’s Park protesters to a city councillor’s tweets to media reports and other social media comments, the criticism has been “borderline sexist and misogynistic” and increasingly demeaning toward her colleague.

“As a female politician, particularly as Conservatives, we tend to get the wrath a little more than the Liberals or New Democrats,” she told reporters after raising her concerns in the legislature Monday.

“I feel that the attacks on my colleague, particularly in the last week and a half, have been beyond the pale.”

MacLeod said many in the Progressive Conservative caucus share her concerns, including Minister of Municipal Affairs Steve Clark.

“When he gave a speech last night” during an unusual debate in the wee hours on Monday, MacLeod said “the tone by those in the gallery was quite different than when the attorney general spoke.

“… I think it’s far too easy for people to want to attack her as a woman and as a young female politician who is new, compared to a more veteran politician who is a male,” said MacLeod who earlier this year won an award for promoting women in politics.

The government, and Mulroney, have come under considerable fire for the decision to invoke the notwithstanding clause to chop the number of wards and city councillors in Toronto, after the courts ruled the move unconstitutional.

The attorney general’s father, former prime minister Brian Mulroney, would not wade in on the current controversy, but did publicly say he does not approve of the use of the Charter’s notwithstanding clause.

MPP Lindsey Park (Durham) said some NDP MPPs and protesters “continue to ask questions like why our attorney general is not taking her father’s advice and why she’s somehow silent and submissive in our PC caucus.

“In fact, we have a Toronto city councillor tweeting out, ‘Hey Brian, call your daughter.’ ”

On Monday, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said Mulroney is an accomplished lawyer in her own right, something she’d stated last week when asked about Brian Mulroney’s comments.

“I’m urging (Mulroney) to do the right thing … she has a head on her shoulders that’s given her the capacity and capability to respond to these questions herself, and she has responded in a way that’s extremely, extremely disappointing — so says not only a number of very prominent Conservatives” but prominent politicians from all three parties and hundreds of Ontario lawyers, said Horwath.

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