It has been a dynamic week in federal politics as NDP leader Jagmeet Singh announced that the party would be pulling out of its agreement with the Federal Liberals to support its minority government.
This action appeared at first glance to be what Conservative Leader Piere Poilievre has been asking of NDP, however, it is not clear if this could lead to a confidence vote to force an early election.
“It will be really interesting,” said Battle River-Crowfoot MP Damien Kurek as the parties head back after the summer break. “The NDP leader said with much bravado that he was tearing up the confidence and supply agreement and then effectively has gone on to say not much has changed. In the last number of days, we have seen the BC NDP, under election pressure, announce they would get rid of their carbon tax, they are the first jurisdiction in the country to have a consumer carbon tax, and now the federal NDP is also saying ‘by the way we also don’t believe in a carbon tax, we’ll let you know sometime in the future what our plan is.’”
This is a shift after voting with Liberals time and time again for the Liberal Carbon Tax. Kurek says Poilievre has plans to challenge the confidence of the government.
“Poilievre has been very clear that he is at the first available opportunity he is going to put forward a confidence motion. We don’t know when that first available opportunity will be,” he said.
There might be opportunities for the Liberal party to live another day with either the NDP falling in line or support from the Bloc.
“The Bloc Quebecois, of course, have said they are for sale so we’ll see what will happen with that,” said Kurek. “From the moment that Singh said he was tearing up that agreement, I have heard consistently heard two things from constituents and folks across the country. Folks want an election, and very few people trust what Jagmeet Singh has to say.”
All of this is happening with the backdrop of some symbolic byelections. One in Montreal, which has been a Liberal stronghold, and one in Winnipeg, which was considered a stronghold for the NDP.
“My feeling is that Jagmeet Signh was bowing to the pressure he was getting from a very unhappy caucus and a lot of feedback he was getting from Canadians, especially when there are these byelections,” said Kurek.
While all of this has been happening, the Liberals are trying to circle their wagons. Last week, the country learned that former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney will be joining the Liberal Party as a special advisor, and he attended the party’s caucus retreat.
“It is interesting because for a long time, Carney has seemed to be the presumptive heir of the leadership of the Liberal Party, but for the Liberals to take this halfway step- a partisan political appointment into the Liberal Party. It is unique because it circumvents cabinet ministers in the normal political process, but also it is unique because it does not require any ethical or conflict of interest rules associated with that,” said Kurek.
‘I think it wreaks of political desperation…I increasingly get the sense that Liberal MPs do not trust their party leadership.”
