Trudeau Government at Risk of Collapse as NDP Pulls Support

(Bloomberg) -- A key former ally of Justin Trudeau’s said he would vote to topple the government, a move that would likely plunge the country into an election early next year unless the prime minister seeks a temporary suspension of parliament. 

Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic Party, said in a public letter that he will put forward a motion of non-confidence in the government at the next parliamentary sitting, which is set to begin Jan. 27.

If all other major opposition parties vote with the NDP, Trudeau’s government would have to resign, triggering an election campaign in Canada soon after Donald Trump returns to power in Washington. 

Trudeau’s Liberal Party does not have a majority in the House, and until now it has been relying on NDP votes to pass legislation and keep the government going. Singh and Trudeau had a formal agreement to cooperate, which they struck in March 2022. But the NDP leader withdrew from that deal in September. 

“The Liberals don’t deserve another chance,” Singh said. “That’s why the NDP will vote to bring this government down, and give Canadians a chance to vote for a government who will work for them.”

Singh issued the letter on Friday morning, shortly before Trudeau announced changes to his cabinet, an effort to restore stability after this week’s shocking resignation of Chrystia Freeland as finance minister. The Liberals are deeply unpopular in polls and the prime minister is facing pressure from within his caucus to step down after Freeland’s departure.

The prime minister is expected to reflect on his future as Liberal leader over the holiday period.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, whose party appears to be on track to win a large majority if an election is held soon, said Friday that he would ask the governor general to urgently reconvene parliament so lawmakers can take down the government right away.

“This cannot go on with a US president coming in threatening tariffs next early next year. We cannot have a chaotic clown show running our government into the ground,” Poilievre told reporters in Ottawa. “What is clear is that Justin Trudeau does not have the confidence of parliament.”

Governor General Mary Simon is the representative of the monarch in Canada and is responsible for summoning, suspending and dissolving parliament. The governor general usually acts on the advice of the prime minister and it would be very unusual for her to take the sort of action Poilievre is requesting. 

New Cabinet 

Trudeau has the option of asking the governor general to prorogue parliament — terminating its current session — which would extend the time before lawmakers return to Ottawa and thus delay Singh’s promised vote of non-confidence.

The new cabinet takes over at a time when the economy is in a state of major uncertainty because of Trump’s threat to place 25% tariffs on all Canadian goods. 

Dominic LeBlanc — who joined the prime minister at a dinner meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in November — was sworn in as finance minister on Monday after Freeland quit.

David McGuinty, an Ottawa member of parliament since 2004, is taking on LeBlanc’s former role as minister of public safety, a position that includes responsibility for border security. That’s increased in importance ever since Trump tied his tariff threat to concerns about migrants and fentanyl flowing into the US, and LeBlanc has said Trudeau asked him to continue to take a leadership role on the issue even as finance minister.  

This week, the government announced a C$1.3 billion ($906 million) border security plan that included expanded surveillance and a pitch for a North American “strike force” to tackle the fentanyl trade. 

Anita Anand, a Toronto lawmaker, will keep the transport portfolio while also taking on the new position of internal trade, focused on reducing provincial trade barriers. Ginette Petitpas Taylor will take over Anand’s previous role as president of the Treasury Board, responsible for managing government departments’ finances.

Nate Erskine-Smith, also representing a Toronto district in parliament, becomes housing minister after Sean Fraser quit earlier this week. Erskine-Smith has a podcast and is viewed as a strong communicator, essential given Canadians’ continued frustrations about the cost of housing. He had previously said he wouldn’t run in the next election, but said Friday that he’d changed his mind.

Other changes to cabinet include:

--With assistance from Derek Decloet and Thomas Seal.

(Updates with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s comments beginning in the eighth paragraph.)

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