By Rebel News | Created at 2024-10-30 21:53:22 | Updated at 2024-11-06 10:25:32
6 days ago
The New Democrats are refusing to side with the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois on upcoming confidence matters, citing Canadians are “struggling” right now and deserve a government that works for them.
“Does that mean that you will not work with the Bloc and Conservatives to bring down the government?” a reporter asked. “I'm not gonna let Pierre Poilievre and the Bloc decide when to cut these things that people need,” replied NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.
“So, no, I'm not gonna play their games.”
The Québec separatists made due on their election ultimatum yesterday, noting their offer of a coalition government with the Liberals had expired.
“We could not have gone further in terms of good faith, of transparency ... and even opportunity for a government that is in distress as much on the inside as from the outside,” Bloc leader Yves-François Blanchet told reporters on Tuesday.
“Its days are numbered.”
Despite expressing similar frustrations, the New Democrats have been unwilling to fire the Trudeau government.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has said his party, though not looking for an election, is not “afraid” of pulling the trigger. Its priorities include abortion access, health care, grocery costs and affordable housing.
The Bloc has already delivered a letter to the Conservatives and NDP on dissolving the 44th Parliament.
Blanchet later accused New Democrat MPs of acting as the “shadow” behind the Trudeau government, though admitting votes from their caucus will be needed to dissolve Parliament.
“Their [NDP] caucus must decide if it’s better for them to go into an election or continue to disappear,” he said, after a Leger poll found the NDP lost considerable support over the summer.
In March 2022, New Democrats pledged to support the Trudeau government in confidence matters through June 2025. In exchange, the Liberals would prioritize pharmacare and dental care in the House of Commons.
However, cabinet reneged on the agreement last December 31 by failing to pass a pharmacare bill as promised. “I am going into this with eyes wide open,” Singh said at the time.
Poilievre earlier challenged the party to dissolve Parliament on a Conservative confidence vote last month. “That way we can have a carbon tax election where Canadians will decide,” he said. The motion ultimately failed.
“People are struggling right now,” continued the NDP leader, citing the affordability crisis has hit Canadians hard in recent months.
“They're having a hard time affording their groceries,” he said. “They're having a hard time affording a place to call home and seniors are just getting help with their teeth.”
So far, the Liberals have survived two non-confidence votes put forward by the Conservatives, with the Bloc and NDP voting to keep them in power.
Blanchet said he would join the Tories to “bring down the government” if senators failed to pass two pieces of legislation by Tuesday.
The Conservatives can try to bring down the government with a non-confidence motion three more times this fall, though the timing of the next vote remains uncertain.
Alex Dhaliwal
Calgary Based Journalist
Alex Dhaliwal is a Political Science graduate from the University of Calgary. He has actively written on relevant Canadian issues with several prominent interviews under his belt.
