A minor party helping to keep Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government in power has withdrawn its support, forcing him to seek new alliances.
Trudeau dismissed talk of an early election after New Democratic Party’s (NDP) leader Jagmeet Singh claimed he was “ripping up” a deal struck between them in 2022. The move left the prime minister dependent on the support of other opposition lawmakers to survive a confidence vote in the lower house of parliament.
An election will come in the coming year, hopefully not until next fall, because in the meantime, we’re going to deliver for Canadians. 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 first took office in November 2015, but struggled over the past two years to repel attacks from opposition centre-right Conservatives. They blamed him for high inflation and the housing crisis. The NDP’s Singh expressed growing frustration with Trudeau in recent months, particularly over what he said was the Liberals’ inability to deal with high grocery shop prices.
Justin Trudeau has proven again and again he will always cave to corporate greed. Liberals have led people down – they don’t deserve another chance.
Crisis of mistrust
However, polls show that the same voter fatigue that Trudeau suffers from has spread to the NDP. Despite successfully pushing the Liberals to introduce measures like a national dental programme, the party is lagging far behind and comes third.
Under the terms of the 2022 deal, the NDP agreed to keep Trudeau in power until mid-2025 in exchange for increased social spending.
The House of Commons will reconvene on 16 September. The Conservatives will then be able to offer a vote of confidence. Trudeau’s Liberals will reportedly retain power if the NDP abstains in the vote. Key to the Trudeau government will be a budget update later this year, which, if lawmakers vote against it, will lead to a new election.
