A screen capture from NDP leader Jagmeet Singh's video announcing that the party was cutting ties with the Liberals.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has ripped up the supply and confidence deal with the Liberals that helped keep the minority government in power.
In a social media video posted Wednesday afternoon, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said he notified Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of the decision.
“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,” Singh said in the video directly addressing Canadians.
“The Liberals have let people down. They don’t deserve another chance from Canadians.”
Singh and Trudeau reached the agreement in March 2022, committing the Liberals to implement several NDP priorities such as dental care and pharmacare, in exchange for the NDP caucus supporting the Liberals on key votes like budgets.
The deal is done.
The Liberals are too weak, too selfish and too beholden to corporate interests to stop the Conservatives and their plans to cut. But the NDP can.
Big corporations and CEOs have had their governments. It’s the people’s time. pic.twitter.com/BsE9zT0CwF
— Jagmeet Singh (@theJagmeetSingh) September 4, 2024
The NDP had been re-evaluating the deal since Aug. 22, the day Labour Minister Steve MacKinnon asked the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose binding arbitration to end a work stoppage at Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Canadian National Railway that paralyzed Canada’s transportation networks.
The request came just 24 hours after the two companies locked out their workers after failing to reach a contract deal at the bargaining table.
This week Singh called the government’s decision to intervene “a line in the sand that was crossed.”
NDP’s labour critic Matthew Green told The Canadian Press earlier this week that as Canada’s only labour party the NDP has a responsibility to take “bold steps” to ensure there’s support for workers and their families, and others who are “struggling in this economy.”
The decision doesn’t mean the government automatically falls at the next confidence vote. Rather, the NDP will determine how to vote on Liberal legislation on a case-by-case basis.
Singh said there is another “bigger battle ahead,” noting the threat of cuts from the Conservatives under their leader Pierre Poilievre if the party wins the next election.
“The fact is, the Liberals are too weak, too selfish and too beholden to corporate interests to fight for people. They cannot be change, they cannot restore the hope, they cannot stop the Conservatives,” he said.
“But we can.”
He said his party will deliver hope and relief, fix health care, build homes and stop price gouging.
Many of the affordability measures the Liberals have brought in over recent years, including dental-care benefits, one-time rental supplements for low-income tenants and a temporary doubling of the GST rebate, were NDP priorities. Some came about exclusively as a result of the deal.
New Democrats also used the deal to push forward a ban on replacement workers during a strike or lockout at federally regulated workplaces.
The two parties also negotiated a housing accelerator fund that allocated billions of dollars to help build more than 750,000 homes across Canada.
House Leader Karina Gould said Aug. 26 that she expected the deal to run until its end, which was to be June 2025. Her office reiterated those remarks Tuesday, after Green’s interview.
Poilievre held a press conference calling for Singh to break the deal. He blamed him for selling out workers by signing onto a “costly coalition” that he said puts Singh and Trudeau ahead of Canadians.
National opinion polls suggest Poilievre’s stance on workers rights and the economy is resonating with Canadians. He continues to hold a substantial lead in polls ahead of Liberals and New Democrats.
What happens now?
The end of the deal does not necessarily mean an election will take place before next year. It does mean the NDP will now vote on Liberal legislation on a case-by-case basis.
The first big test could come this fall if the government tables an economic update in Parliament. If the Liberals survive, another decisive moment will be the vote on the next federal budget implementation bill, likely next spring.
What did the confidence and supply agreement involve?
There are two things that can topple a minority government: confidence votes and budget (supply) votes. The confidence and supply agreement was basically a promise by the NDP not to oppose the Liberals in those key moments as a way to keep them in power.
In exchange, the Liberals adjusted their legislative agenda to make room for some NDP priorities.
How was it different from a coalition?
A coalition is a much more formal partnership. If the parties had opted for a coalition, New Democrat MPs would likely have had seats at the cabinet table, and might have been expected to align on legislation — even if they were not confidence votes.
How did it work?
The parties agreed to a list of priorities on which to advance, including a dental-care program for low-income Canadians and national pharmacare.
In exchange, the Liberals have counted on NDP support on the budget, budgetary policy and budget implementation bills. The NDP also promised not to move a vote of non-confidence or vote for a non-confidence motion until the House rises ahead of the next fixed-date election, which would be in 2025.
An oversight group met regularly to make sure the agreement was still working for both parties.
What did the deal achieve?
The Liberals acted on several NDP priorities, including dental-care benefits, one-time rental supplements for low-income tenants, 10 days of paid sick leave for federally regulated workers and a temporary doubling of the GST rebate.
The New Democrats also used the deal to push forward items such as pharmacare, a ban on replacement workers during a strike or lockout at federally regulated workplaces, and a housing accelerator fund that allocated billions of dollars to help build homes across Canada.
Story by Mickey Djuric and Laura Osman
