NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh pulls out of supply and confidence agreement with Liberals

 Singh's announcement comes less than two weeks before Parliament is set to resume

"The deal is done," Jagmeet Singh wrote in a tweet. 

OTTAWA — NDP leader Jagmeet Singh announced today he is pulling his party out of the confidence and supply agreement with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals, opening the door to a fall election.

The Liberals and NDP entered into the deal in March 2022 and it was set to run until June of next year. It has allowed the Liberals to govern in a minority government for nearly three years, well past the average length of a minority.

Singh was highly critical of the Liberals’ decision last week to send rail workers and their employers to binding arbitration after a one-day strike.

In a video posted online announcing the decision, Singh said the Liberals are not keeping the interests of working people at the forefront.

“Canadians are fighting a battle.  A battle for the future of the middle class. Justin Trudeau has proven again and again he will always cave to corporate greed. The Liberals have let people down. They don’t deserve another chance from Canadians.

The Conservatives have commanded a polling lead of around 20 per cent in national polls for more than a year, while the NDP has lingered in third place and are projected to lose some of their 24 seats. Singh still insisted that only his party can fight the Conservatives.

“In the next federal election, Canadians will choose between Pierre Poilievre’s callous cuts or hope. Hope that when we stand united, we win. That Canada’s middle class will once again thrive together,” he said. “It’s always impossible until it isn’t. It can’t be done until someone does it.”

At an announcement in Newfoundland Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the agreement had allowed the government to bring in programs like dental care that have been valuable to Canadians The prime minister said his focus would remain on delivering those programs rather than the politics of the House of Commons.

“I really hope the NDP stays focused on how we can deliver for Canadians, as we have over the past years, rather than focusing on politics,” he said.

Trudeau said he still hopes an election will come next fall, but he is going to focus on delivering on initiatives like pharmacare, which he said is one of many programs where there is still work to do.

“I am not focused on politics. I’ll let other parties focus on politics. I am focused on actually delivering the things that Canadians told me this summer they need.”

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called on Singh to pull out of the deal last week in an open letter, accusing him of staying in the deal only so he would be able to receive an MP pension.

“Pull out of the costly coalition and vote non-confidence in the government this September to trigger a carbon tax election in October of this year or you will forever be known as ‘Sellout Singh,’” Poilievre wrote in the letter.

Many of the items in the agreement have already been passed or are underway. The Liberals passed legislation banning replacement workers and mandated 10-days of paid sick leave for workers in federally-regulated workplaces.

The Liberals have also created a dental care plan that covers seniors, children and people with disabilities, without existing coverage, who make less than $90,000 per year. An expansion is set for next year that would cover people in all age brackets.

The Liberals passed pharmacare legislation through the House of Commons, but it has not yet cleared the Senate.

The NDP’s decision to leave the deal would not automatically trigger an election. The Liberals could still attract support on a vote-by-vote basis from the NDP or other opposition parties.

This fall’s fiscal update would be one early confidence vote, but the Conservatives or any of the opposition parties could also introduce a non-confidence vote.

Singh is also set to meet with his caucus in Montreal next week as the party prepares for upcoming byelections in Winnipeg’s Elmwood—Transcona riding and Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun riding.

More to come …

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ndp-leader-jagmeet-singh-announcement