Not all P.E.I. politicians keen on collaboration as PCs return to house with big majority

A new session of the P.E.I. Legislature gets underway Friday, the first since Dennis King's Progressive Conservatives made significant gains in the province's general election on April 3.

The PCs went from a bare majority of 15 MLAs to 22, reducing the Liberals and Greens to a combined five seats. That's the smallest opposition presence the legislature has seen since the 2011 election returned five PC MLAs and 22 Liberals.

Government whip Zack Bell said he doesn't think the PCs will change their approach from when they formed a minority government four years ago — a minority that became a majority when Bell himself won a by-election in 2020.

"I don't think too many things will change," he said. "I think our leader, Premier King, has done a great job and tried to work as collaboratively as possible with all parties.

"At the end of the day, I do think it is about Islanders, keeping Islanders at the forefront."

But there are already suggestions the shift in power in the house will lead to changes in how MLAs do business, and could bring an official end to the co-operative approach among parties that made "collaboration" a political buzzword in the province four years ago.

Back then, King initiated the practice of reaching out to opposition parties for priorities they wanted to see included in the government's budget and throne speech.

The premier did the same thing this time. The Greens provided budgetary requests, but told King the PCs are on their own when it comes to the throne speech.

In their written response to the premier, the Greens said it "muddies the waters" for Island voters when ideas from all parties are put forward by government. 

"I think Islanders deserve and need to have the pure, unadulterated vision of what Dennis King and his government want to do," Green Leader Peter Bevan-Baker told CBC News.

Bevan-Baker said his party was successful in the past getting government to adopt ideas which he said have improved life for Islanders, including medical homes and neighbourhoods — the collaborative practice model at the heart of government's plan to improve access to primary health care.

And yet, in the 2023 election the PCs took six of eight seats occupied by the Greens.

"It's not that we're going to stop bringing forward ideas," Bevan-Baker said. "We're just going to end the pretense that we are willing partners in a collaboration which, to a large extent, suited the governing party far more than it did the opposition."

Interim Liberal Leader Hal Perry, who will now lead the Official Opposition, said that while the circumstances have changed, he's willing to give collaboration another go.

"If we have an opportunity to put our input or our stamp on anything that moves this government's path forward, we'll take that opportunity," he said.

"Yes, the government does have a majority, so they can push their own agenda if need be. However, I am extending the 'collaborative' hand to them, and hopefully we can work together, because at the end of the day, it's in the best interests of Islanders… to address the issues and the concerns that they may have, and make a better life for Islanders."

Experiment over?

But UPEI political scientist Don Desserud said P.E.I.'s experiment with a more collaborative approach to governing is likely over.

He said the Green Party's experience shows such experiment doesn't work under the existing, adversarial political system.

"There is no reward in the end for the opposition parties that play that role," said Desserud.

I think you kind of hope that there's a better way of doing things. But apparently, that's not what wins elections.​​​​​​- Don Desserud

"What the public expects is you have opposition parties that hammer away at government, that expose problems ... Is that a good system? Well it's the one we have. I think you kind of hope that there's a better way of doing things. But apparently, that's not what wins elections."

Desserud said he also thinks there could be resistance from an expanded PC caucus to reach out to the opposition for ideas given the strong mandate the party received in the election.

"I think we're going to see a very different PC government."

No time allocation deal yet

As of Wednesday, there was no agreement among party house leaders on time allocation for the coming legislature sitting.

Without that, it will be up to the Speaker to decide how much time each party gets to bring forward motions and bills — and to quiz cabinet ministers during question period.

Darlene Compton, the former PC finance minister, and Liberal MLA Robert Henderson have both put their names forward for Speaker, with a secret vote among MLAs to take place Friday.

Compton has the support of the premier and likely much of the PC caucus.

With her as Speaker, the PCs would be left with nine MLAs in their backbench — nearly twice as many members as the combined opposition — to share responsibilities during question period.

"We were elected by our residents to ask those tougher questions and to hold government to account," Bell said of the job the backbench is prepared to do.

He said with the larger mandate from voters comes increased expectations for government to make solid gains addressing ongoing, significant challenges in areas like health care and housing.

Desserud agrees.

He noted that during the campaign King's stump speech riffed on all the disasters his government faced in its first term, including the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and two devastating storms.

"You know, that's fair. But they don't have that excuse anymore," Desserud said. "And I think the public … has very high expectations of strong performances, and very quickly."

CBC asked to speak with Premier Dennis King for this story, but he was not available.