Canada's NDP leader announces end of agreement with Liberals …

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — The leader of Canada's left-leaning New Democratic Party said Thursday that policies supported by Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre are hurting Canadians, but he declined to say whether he would be willing to call a snap federal election soon.

Jagmeet Singh had said a day earlier in a video posted on social media that he had “ripped up” a key agreement with Trudeau's Liberal government that had helped keep the minority government in power.

During a press conference in Toronto on Thursday, Singh acknowledged that his surprise decision to withdraw his support for the supply and confidence agreement could bring forward the date of Canada's next general election, expected to be held in October 2025.

“I have torn up the supply and confidence agreement with Justin Trudeau, and we know that this makes the election timing more uncertain,” Singh said.

Singh declined to give a specific timetable for when he might vote against the Liberals in a vote of no confidence.

“I will look at every vote that comes before us and we will make a decision in the best interests of Canadians, as any minority government normally does,” he said.

The Liberals currently have 154 seats in the 338-member Canadian House of Commons. The Conservatives have 119 and the NDP has 24. The Bloc Québécois, a Quebec-based party that supports Quebec sovereignty, has 32 seats.

Singh and Trudeau agreed to a supply and confidence agreement in March 2022 in which the Liberals committed to implementing several NDP priorities, such as dental care and pharmaceutical care, in exchange for the NDP caucus supporting the Liberals on key votes.

Sanjay Jeram, a political science professor at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, said the agreement was “more show than substance” and did not give the NDP official representation in the federal government, unlike some coalitions in other countries.

Most polls have the Conservatives well ahead of the Liberals, with the NDP in third place, so it's hard to see what the New Democrats could gain from a quick election.

“Based on the current poll results, forming a government is not a realistic option for them,” Jeram said. “It is difficult to understand what they really intend to do,” he said, adding: “Do they want to become the official opposition?”

Jeram said there may be concerns within the party that the Conservatives have tried to appeal to working-class voters, which could rob the centre-left NDP of support. An early election could stop that loss of confidence.

Libby Davies, an NDP MP for 18 years, said the termination of the agreement puts pressure on the Liberals.

“Will it increase the likelihood of an earlier election? That's part of the risk,” Davies said. “It's the excitement of a potential election that keeps the Liberals on their toes and gives the NDP much more leverage.”

Since the Liberals are far behind in the polls and Trudeau is very unpopular, she doubts that they want a new election.

“I don't think they want an election now,” she said. “This really puts pressure on the Liberals to make a decision: Are they going to listen to the NDP's demands?”

In a campaign-style speech, Singh criticized both Trudeau and Poilievre.

“Justin Trudeau has failed Canadians,” Singh said. “Trudeau's Liberals cannot bring about change. They are too weak and too selfish to stop Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives.”

Singh, in turn, accused the Conservatives of wanting to cut health insurance benefits and encourage corporate greed.

“Conservative cuts would make things worse,” he said.

He portrayed the NDP as a party of hope.

“There is a fight ahead of us, the fight for the Canada of our dreams,” Singh said. “The fight to restore hope and the promise that hard work will bring a good life.”

Former MP Davies said if the NDP were to force a new election, it would have to explain its reasons for doing so.

“Mr Singh has to present a vision of the NDP and what that vision should look like for the country,” she said. “The longer he is tied to this agreement, the more difficult it will be in some ways, because all the good things that have happened, the Liberals will take credit for themselves.”