The question of what are Canadian values is far from clear, MacKay said.<\/p>\n
“When you drill down into that type of discussion the first question that comes to mind is, who makes that decision? And what is that bar going to be? And how possibly could somebody coming from a country that has no understanding of what it means to be a Canadian\u00a0meet\u00a0that criteria?,” MacKay told CBC.<\/p>\n
The former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party helped unite the party with the Canadian Alliance to become the Conservative Party. He\u00a0decided not to run for the leadership\u00a0last September and has rarely weighed in on the race since announcing that decision.<\/p>\n
![\"Conservative](\"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/RSSPoster_PRO\/cache\/ab1ff_conservative-leadership-debate-20170204.jpg\")
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Kellie Leitch says it’s OK if other members of the party criticize her demand for a ‘Canadian values’ test, as she believes Canadians are behind her. (Andrew Vaughan\/Canadian Press)<\/p>\n
He says he’s concerned for the long-term health of the party.<\/p>\n
“As somebody who has invested a lot of time and effort into building this party and putting us in contention and somebody who cares deeply for the country, you need competitive parties. You need, in my estimation, a Conservative party that is vying for government,” he explained.<\/p>\n
“I do worry about certain positions that have been staked out. Having been through a leadership contest, I know that the rhetoric sometimes gets heated, but it does pose the risk of causing brand damage for the Conservative Party,” MacKay added.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fellow Conservatives among Leitch’s\u00a0critics\u00a0<\/h2>\n
His comments come a few days after the Nova Scotia leader of the Progressive Conservative Party condemned Leitch and Stephen Blaney for their positions on immigration, arguing they were not inclusive enough.<\/p>\n
When asked by reporters, Leitch says no one at the debate raised the criticism with her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her campaign manager stepped down last week, saying he\u00a0felt he was becoming a distraction to her campaign. Nick Kouvalis apologized after insulting a constitutional expert on Twitter, using the term “cuck” associated with the far right in the U.S.\u00a0<\/p>\n