MP Glen Motz says New Democrat leader Jagmeet Singh could be pulling a "stunt". File Photo/CHAT News

By Eli J. Ridder

Medicine Hat MP ‘cautiously optimistic’ after NDP pulls out from Liberal deal

Sep 4, 2024 | 3:00 PM

Medicine Hat’s federal representative Glen Motz says he is “cautiously optimistic” after New Democrats pulled out of a supply and confidence deal with the ruling minority Liberals on Wednesday.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said in a video statement that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau proved he will “always cave to corporate greed”.

“The Liberals have let people down; they don’t deserve another chance from Canadians,” Singh said.

Motz said he doesn’t trust Singh after he made the announcement via a pre-recorded video without taking questions and without confirming if he and the NDP still had confidence in the Liberals.

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“This may be more of a stunt to try and regain some of his bleeding support,” Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner MP Motz told CHAT News.

READ: NDP pulling out of supply and confidence deal

“If he was legit doing this and cared about Canadians he’d say ‘you know what, we made a mistake, we will vote non-confidence in this government’,” he added.

“The fact that he is non-committal tells me that he’s going to play a little game here. And this is not a game for Canadians.”

The Liberal-NDP deal had protected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government from the constant threat of election and created some stability for the Liberals.

Former Cypress-Medicine Hat MLA Drew Barnes said the NDP was abandoning ship amid Trudeau’s growing unpopularity.

“Even Jagmeet Singh and the NDP are starting to find their partnership with the plummeting Trudeau Liberals too tenuous,” Barnes said in a statement to CHAT News.

“This is good for all Canadians as Trudeau and Singh’s embrace of socialism, unlimited spending and government interference has led to unaffordable and ineffective programs, a lack of resource movement and a declining standard of living.”

Conservatives, who are favoured to win in recent polls, are eager for a national election.

“What Canadians need is an election now. And for Canadians to decide between this costly coalition of an NDP-Liberal government or a common sense conservative one that will axe the tax and fix the budget,” Motz said.

Barnes agreed, adding the NDP “should not be rewarded for this because they have been key architects of our diminished well-being.”

The former MLA also called for Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre to call for a confidence motion as soon as possible.

Motz said he would be ready for whenever an election was called.

“There’s a lot of Conservative supporters here that have told me over the years, ‘hey, when we have an election, we’re ready, we’ll help you out with whatever we need to do,'” Motz said.

“If the writ was dropped tomorrow, within a couple of days we’d be up and running.”

— with files from The Canadian Press