We face a climate emergency — that is the existential threat of our time that must be decisively tackled in the three-year life of this agreement. And this agreement does not spell out an emergency plan, writes columnist Seth Klein.
The spirit of collaboration the new Liberal-NDP deal brings to politics is encouraging, but aside from the pledge to provide dental care to low-income Canadians, it lacks ambition and won’t bring about the “transformational change we need,” said Green Party interim leader Amita Kuttner.
Whether or not the Liberal-NDP pact will actually keep the federal government in power until 2025 remains to be seen, but in the short term, it promises to change the dynamics of the Conservative Party of Canada leadership race, one poll analyst says.
NDP and Liberal MPs were generally upbeat about the idea of working together as the dust began to settle following the unexpected announcement that their party leaders had reached a deal to keep the Liberal government going for another three years.
Quebec Premier François Legault is warning that the new alliance between the federal Liberals and the NDP is going to trigger a confrontation with the provinces, particularly around health care.
The Liberals and New Democrats have been dancing around the idea of a deal to work together since the 2019 election first reduced the Trudeau government to a minority.