NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Monday that Canadians “are finished with and done” with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau days after pulling out of a supply-and-confidence agreement with the Liberals earlier this month.
Singh was speaking to reporters in Ottawa on the first day back for MPs as Parliament returned after summer break.
“People are telling us again and again that they are fed up with and frustrated with Justin Trudeau, who has let big corporate grocery stores rip them off,” Singh said.
“He’s let big corporate landlords jack up rents and so people tell me that they are finished with and done with Justin Trudeau.”
Singh comments come as a new Ipsos poll conducted exclusively for Global News released on Monday showed that support for Trudeau and his Liberal government has hit a “new low,” with just over one-third of Canadians (33 per cent) approving of the Trudeau government.
Meanwhile, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has led in the polls for more than a year, was favoured by 45 per cent of Canadians surveyed by Ipsos, who said he would make the “best prime minister of Canada.”
Fewer Canadians felt that way about the incumbent prime minister, however, with 26 per cent saying Trudeau was their top pick for the job. Singh was not far behind with the support of 23 per cent of Canadians.
Darrell Bricker, global CEO of Ipsos public affairs, said out of the top three political party leaders, Singh has “got the most work to do.”
While criticizing the Liberals for driving up the cost of living, Singh said the Tories under Poilievre “want to cut the things that people need,” such as health care and pensions.
In preparation for Parliament’s return, the Liberals, Conservatives, NDP and Bloc Québécois all met to discuss their fall strategy last week.
Singh said his party’s focus in the upcoming fall session will be on affordable housing, lowering grocery prices and rents as well as fixing the health care system, although specific health care systems are under provincial jurisdiction, not federal.
“We know that in the next election, there’s going to be an important choice — a choice of Conservative cuts under Pierre Poilievre or New Democrats who strengthen the programs you need.”
On Sept. 4, the New Democrats pulled out of a supply-and-confidence agreement with the Liberals.
Singh announced in a pre-recorded video that he had “ripped up” the deal with the Liberals, arguing that they have “let people down” and “don’t deserve” to be re-elected.
The Liberals and NDP penned the confidence-and-supply agreement in March 2022. It was supposed to keep the minority government led by Trudeau in power until June 2025 and move ahead on some mutually agreeable policies.
The parties agreed to a list of priorities, including a dental-care program for low-income Canadians and national pharmacare.
In exchange, the Liberals counted on NDP support on budgets and any other matters of confidence that would have toppled the government if the Liberals had lost a vote.
Singh told reporters on Monday that ending the Liberal deal has made “an election date more likely” and that the New Democrats “will be ready for an election.”
Poilievre has pledged to bring forward a non-confidence motion in the Liberal government “at the earliest possible opportunity” in the House of Commons — and has directly challenged Singh to vote with him.
Singh reiterated on Monday that the NDP will consider each motion as it comes and decide “in the best interests of Canadians.”
— with files from The Canadian Press