The Bloc Québécois has not initiated talks with the NDP to topple the minority Liberal government despite leader Yves-François Blanchet’s threats to do so, says NDP House Leader Peter Julian.
“As House leaders, we’re reaching out to all the parties every day, but I think there’s a difference between what they might be saying publicly and what they’re actually doing privately,” Julian said during CTV’s Question Period Oct. 6 when asked by host Vassy Kapelos if he has heard from the Bloc.
Blanchet said last week he would be quick to start discussions with other opposition parties should the Liberals fail to support his party’s bills, a non-negotiable condition of the Bloc’s support of the government in confidence votes.
While a non-binding Bloc motion passed in the House last week, most Liberal MPs voted against it.
Blanchet has said Bill C-319 and C-282 must become law by Oct. 29, or his party will initiate discussions with the Conservatives and the NDP to bring down the government.
Bill C-319 aims to increase the Old Age Security pension by 10 percent for seniors aged 65 to 74 while Bill C-282 focuses on safeguarding supply managed sectors in trade agreements.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh ended his party’s supply-and-confidence agreement with the Liberals in early September. While the Bloc has used the situation to extract gains from the Liberals, Singh has said his party will approach voting decisions individually, evaluating each case on its own merits.
When questioned on any specific policies or commitments the NDP wants the Liberals to accept to ensure continued support on confidence matters, Julian said the NDP previously succeeded in strong-arming the government during the COVID-19 pandemic, well before the supply-and-confidence agreement was established.
“The NDP was able to force the parliament at the time to put in place measures to help small businesses, to help families, help seniors, students, people with disabilities, and to put in place for workers paid sick leave for the first time in Canadian history,” Julian said. “Those are all very clear tangible results of the NDP proceeding, vote by vote.”
Julian argued Canadians appear to approve of Singh’s vote-by-vote approach, pointing to poll numbers last week from Abacus Data and Nanos Research.
Nanos data suggested the NDP is tied with Liberals for the first time since 2015 while Abacus found the NDP had surpassed the Liberals in voter intent outside of Quebec.
Abacus data shows the Liberals held 29 percent of voter intention across Canada in January 2023 and now sit at 21 percent, a drop of eight points. The Liberal’s loss has largely been the Conservative’s gain. The Tories sat at 37 percent at the beginning of last year and now hold a 43 percent vote share, a gain of six percentage points. The NDP has gained one point during the same period, rising from 18 percent in January 2023 to 19 percent currently.
The Green Party picked up the remaining one percent voter share lost by the Liberals, rising from 4 percent to its present 5 percent rating.
Election Readiness
When questioned about the NDP’s fundraising and cash reserves compared to the Liberals and the Tories, and whether the comparatively limited financial resources could be a reason for his party’s preference to delay an election until the new year, Julian noted that there are spending restrictions in place during elections, creating a “level playing field.”“The NDP will be very competitive with the other two parties in the next election campaign,” Julian said. “So it’s not a question of financing. It’s a question of getting things done.”
He said the NDP is ready for an election whenever it may happen.
“My signs are ready to go any time, and in a minority Parliament, that’s what all members of parliament should be thinking,” he said.
Singh has been questioned repeatedly by the media about his reasons for supporting the Liberals during the recent Conservative non-confidence motion to topple the government.
The NDP leader has said he and his party would vote on a case-by-case basis. He also said on Oct. 1 that “things are bad right now” with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre would “make things even worse.”
He told reporters during a Sept. 19 press conference that regardless of when the next election falls, “I’m here to become the next prime minister of this country.”
