LoR - MA supervisor suggested getting someone else to write the letter

[turkergirl]

My MA supervisor, who has always written LoRs for me in the past, has just recently suggested I use a different referee for my SSHRC application. He suggested I might have more success using someone whose research aligns with mine, and someoe who has worked with me more recently (I did my MA with him 12 years ago!). The only issue is that SSHRC asks for the MA supervisor to write a letter, no? I'm not sure what to do, and so I contacted my current external examiner for my PhD (who knows me through other work in the field), and is happy to write a LoR for me. He's a better option by far, and well known in my field, but he's not my MA supervisor. Of course my current PhD supervisor is writing me a letter, but will it be an issue if my MA supervisor is not my second referee?   

[fuzzylogician]

Can you find a link saying that your MA advisor must write you a letter? If you know for a fact that this is the case, then of course you need his support and you just need to go back to him and tell him that. Maybe he just doesn't know the rules. It sounds like he's trying to be supportive and thinks that a more recent letter might be a better choice. If you can't find any such requirement, then I would tend to agree with your advisor that a letter from someone who you've recently worked with and is in your area is better than a letter from someone who you haven't worked with for 12 years. Here is what I found; it doesn't mention anything about absolutely needing your MA advisor. Furthermore, I don't think it should raise a red flag that you don't have this letter, since again we're talking about a degree from over a decade ago compared to a more updated letter, and since you do have a letter from yoru current advisor. http://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/funding-financement/apply-demande/tips-astuces/doctoral_awards-bourses_de_doctorat-eng.aspx#a8