Trade minister says she is ‘disappointed’ by report of caucus revolt to oust Trudeau

OTTAWA — A growing number of Liberal MPs are banding together to convince Prime Minister Justin Trudeau it’s time to step down, although he appears to retain support from his cabinet.

Trade Minister Mary Ng said Friday she had full confidence in Trudeau as word began to spread about a growing revolt. Ng was travelling back to Canada with Trudeau from Laos, where they were attending a summit of southeast Asian countries.

When their plane landed in Hawaii for a refuelling stop, Ng said she turned on her phone and saw multiple media reports about efforts by some of her Liberal colleagues in media outlets such as CBC News and The Toronto Star.

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“I would say that I’m disappointed because Canadians expect us to be focusing on Canadians,” Ng said. “I’m a Liberal MP and I have full confidence in Justin Trudeau as my leader.”

Details about the strategy and breadth of the attempt to push him to resign remains unclear, though one MP told The Canadian Press the number of MPs involved is not insignificant and that unlike previous rumours of a revolt, this one is real.

That MP is not among those involved in the revolt.

Liberals sliding in polls

Trudeau has maintained his hold on the Liberal party even as his government’s slide in the polls became a free fall and his Liberal party lost two strongholds in Toronto and Montreal byelections.

The noise grew loudest in late June after the loss of the Toronto-St. Paul’s seat to the Conservatives, but an attempt to push him out then did not garner broader support from more than one or two MPs.

It quietened somewhat over the summer, only to come roaring back in September after the NDP pulled out of the supply and confidence deal, national campaign director Jeremy Broadhurst quit and the party lost a second critical byelection in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun riding to the Bloc Québécois.

The Liberals have been unable to win back Canadians who have been walloped in recent years by the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing inflation crisis. A housing shortage which many blame on growing immigration numbers, has contributed to the government’s pain.

Trudeau’s popularity has nosedived amid it all.

The push to remove him has taken on some new energy in the last 10 days as Trudeau and many of his senior staff were overseas, first in Paris for the Francophonie, and then Laos for the ASEAN.

Several other Liberals contacted by The Canadian Press Friday say they have not been approached to join the bid to remove Trudeau, and suggested the effort was being kept away from cabinet ministers who are perceived to be solidly behind the prime minister.

The Liberals survived two confidence votes put forward by the Conservatives since Parliament returned in mid-September, but the Bloc has given them until the end of October to meet demands to expand the old age security pension and protect supply management in international trade talks.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has given no ultimatum but wants to see the first phase of pharmacare involving diabetes and birth control gain more solid footing before an election.

The bill got royal assent Thursday but the government has to sign deals with each province and territory to roll it out.

Singh said Friday Trudeau needs to move quickly to make those deals happen.

The House of Commons is on a break week for Thanksgiving until Oct. 21.

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