Jagmeet Singh says NDP will back Liberals in non-confidence vote
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre calls Singh 'a fake, a phoney, a fraud and a liar'
Days after pulling out of a deal to prop up Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Thursday his MPs will vote to support the Liberal government in next week's non-confidence motion vote — which, if adopted, would trigger a federal election.
That Conservative motion is headed for all but certain defeat now that both the NDP and Bloc Québécois have said they will stand against Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's attempt to force an early election — even though both Singh and Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet have said they have misgivings about Trudeau.
"New Democrats came to Ottawa to get stuff done, to work for people, to fight for people, not to play Pierre Poilievre's games," Singh said.
"We're not going to let Pierre Poilievre tell us what to do."
Singh said Poilievre and the Conservatives must be stopped because they could cut social programs, pensions and health care if elected.
But Singh also said Tuesday that the Liberals are "finished" and he told his caucus Wednesday that the Liberals and Trudeau "don't deserve another chance."
When announcing the termination of the supply-and-confidence agreement earlier this month, Singh said Trudeau is beholden to "corporate greed" and has repeatedly "let Canadians down" while in office.
Asked why he is supporting a prime minister he has described so unfavourably, Singh said that while Trudeau has been bad, "Poilievre would be even worse."
Singh said the NDP is building a "movement" to win the next election.
"I'm here to become the next prime minister," Singh said. "In the next election, people have a choice."
Singh said he could bring down the government in the coming weeks, adding he will decide how to vote on non-confidence motions on a "case-by-case" basis.
A fall election would be tricky for the NDP because its provincial counterparts in B.C. and Saskatchewan will be contesting elections in the coming months.
Concurrent federal and provincial elections would be a drain on the party's money and resources. Unlike other parties, the provincial and federal NDP wings are fused together as one party.
The federal NDP also has pulled in a lot less money through fundraising than the two major parties.
The Conservatives raised an eye-popping $20 million in the first half of this year, compared to $6.9 million for the Liberals and just $2.6 million for the NDP, according to Elections Canada data.
Poilievre calls Singh 'a liar'
Poilievre was scathing in his criticism of Singh's decision to back the government again.
"He is a fake, a phoney and a fraud. How can anyone ever believe what this sellout NDP leader says in the future?" Poilievre said in question period.
Later, speaking to reporters, Poilievre called Singh "a liar."
He accused Singh of ripping up his deal with Trudeau just before this week's federal byelections to convince people in those ridings that a vote for the NDP was a vote for change.
As soon as those elections were over, Poilievre said, "Singh taped back together the carbon tax coalition" and sold out voters.
Singh's claim he was distancing himself from the Liberals was "all a lie," Poilievre added.
Bloc lays out its demands
The Bloc is expected to vote down the non-confidence motion next week.
But Blanchet said that shouldn't be interpreted as an endorsement of the government in perpetuity.
"I'm propping nobody up," he said.
"I never support Liberals, so help me God. I go against the Conservatives on a vote that is only about Pierre Poilievre and his huge ambition for himself," he said.
Blanchet said the Bloc's future support for the government will depend on the Liberals delivering on two requests: an increase to pensions for seniors and more protection for the supply-managed dairy, poultry and egg sectors.
The Liberal government already has enacted a 10 per cent boost to Old Age Security (OAS) for pensioners over the age of 75.
The Bloc wants the increase to be extended to all seniors over the age of 65. The party has a private member's bill before Parliament to do just that.
That sort of boost would be costly for the federal treasury at a time when the Liberals are trying to rein in government spending to keep the national debt in check and maintain Canada's top credit rating.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has said the Bloc's 10 per cent boost would have a net cost of $16.1 billion over five years, a pricey commitment as the federal government is also trying to find money to expand new social programs and build up Canada's military to meet NATO spending targets.
Blanchet suggested the Liberals might come around on the policy.
"We are beginning to hear rumours that they will consider that seriously," he said. "We have a very good chance of obtaining that in the coming weeks and if not, something will happen."
Blanchet also wants to strengthen supply management. The dairy sector is a powerful lobby group in Quebec and elsewhere.
A private member's bill that exempts the supply-managed farm sectors from any future trade negotiations passed the Commons and is currently before the Senate.
Some farmers have lobbied hard for the bill, while trade experts have panned it as problematic ahead of an expected renegotiation of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), which could happen as early as 2026.
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