Two of the parties in the New Brunswick legislature will keep their official party status.
Premier Blaine Higgs, whose PC Party formed a majority government in last month’s election, will recommend that the Green Party of New Brunswick and the People’s Alliance of New Brunswick be granted third-party status in the legislature.
Higgs can’t unilaterally make the decision but his recommendation to the Legislative Administration Committee, which will have a PC majority, makes it all but certain.
Under the legislature’s standing rules, a party must win five seats or 20 per cent of the vote to be recognized as an official party.
The Greens and the People’s Alliance both fell short of those thresholds, winning three seats and two seats, respectively.
The recommendation from Higgs will continue a rule created two years ago during a minority government that saw MLAs grant an exemption for both parties.
In a statement to Global News, Higgs said that he made the decision to offer a unified response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I am cognizant of the role each party has played in managing the pandemic thus far and I value their contribution,” Higgs wrote.
“I think now it is more important than ever to work together to map out New Brunswick’s post-Covid-19 future.”