T1B

A funny thing happened on the way to a comic spoof at 24 Sussex Drive this weekend.

An Ottawa photographer was hired, then un-hired to work with TV comedian Rick Mercer in a sketch at Prime Minister Stephen Harper's residence. He was let go from the assignment, he was told, because he'd been "critical" of Harper. The photographer in question, Dave Chan, also worked for Liberal prime minister Paul Martin and the incident revives the ongoing tension over how Harper's office has handled journalists seen as unfriendly to the Conservative government.

The parliamentary press gallery is meeting today to discuss matters of access to the Prime Minister.

Chan, an award-winning freelance photographer and husband of Martin's former press secretary Melanie Gruer, was hired by Mercer's crew to assist in a shoot at 24 Sussex Saturday morning.

But an hour or so after he got the call on Friday evening, Chan got another call from Mercer's producer, John Marshall, and was told that Dimitri Soudas, Harper's press secretary, had vetoed his presence on the assignment. Chan was told the Prime Minister's Office flatly objected to him as a critic of Harper.

"I'm really disappointed and I find their approach unprofessional. They are stopping me from making a living," Chan said.