Some Liberal MPs said Tuesday Prime Minister Justin Trudeau can’t carry on as party leader after the humiliation of Chrystia Freeland’s public resignation from cabinet and another bruising byelection loss in B.C.
The calls for Trudeau to resign are coming from some of the same people who have said he should go in the past.
But some MPs who previously were on the fence — or even defended the prime minister in the past — are now coming forward to say it’s time to turn the page on the Trudeau era.
Trudeau told disaffected MPs at a caucus meeting last night that he’d heard their concerns and would take time to think about his future. He’s said that in the past, only to later decide to stay on to fight another day.
But the Liberals’ byelection loss in B.C. last night might leave Trudeau with less room to manoeuvre.
The Conservative candidate won the seat by some 50 percentage points over the Liberal challenger — an embarrassing result, given the Liberals won that seat in the last general election.
One of the MPs now being more vocal about his desire for change at the top is B.C. Liberal MP Ken Hardie. He said Tuesday he “regrettably” believes the prime minister must resign and make room for another leader to take the party in a different direction.
Hardie said that while he was prepared to give Trudeau more time to try and restore his standing among Canadians, that just hasn’t happened and it’s time to go.
“The prime minister has not moved the needle,” Hardie told the CBC News Network.
Hardie said the government has put forward some strong policies in recent months to address the challenges of our time, but they aren’t resonating with Canadians because so many of them are just fed up with Trudeau.
“The Canadian people have been telling us for some time — the street has been talking to us — and they are saying this leader cannot be supported,” he said.
“The prime minister just doesn’t have the confidence of the Canadian people. The prime minister should resign and somebody new should take the party and the country forward.”
A growing number of people in the Liberal party are calling on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign as leader. And Surrey’s Feetwood-Port Kelis MP Ken Hardie added his voice to their ranks when asked by CBC’s Gloria Makarenko if the PM should step down.
Hardie follows Ontario MP Francis Drouin, who — after Freeland’s shock resignation on Monday — said that Trudeau must step down. Drouin previously asked disaffected MPs to drop their efforts to push out the prime minister.
New Brunswick MP Wayne Long has been leading the charge against Trudeau within caucus for months.
He said that, by his count, somewhere between 40 and 50 of the 153 sitting Liberal MPs want Trudeau to resign immediately, and there are more who think he should go but are keeping their opinions quiet. He said about 50 MPs are professed Trudeau loyalists who think he shouldn’t go anywhere.
Trudeau is ‘living in a false reality,’ says Liberal
More importantly, Long said, most Canadians are done with Trudeau and he should read the writing on the wall.
If he stays on, the party is headed for an electoral disaster, he said, pointing to polls that suggest the Liberals have the support of about 20 per cent of Canadians.
“The prime minister is living in a false reality. He’s delusional if he thinks we can continue like this. It’s unfair to us MPs, it’s unfair to the ministers and most importantly it’s unfair to the country. We need to move on with a new direction and we need to reboot,” Long told reporters on Parliament Hill.
“One in five Canadians are supporting us right now … I don’t know what more anybody would have to see to know it’s time to move on. Those that are advising him, those that are surrounding him, are doing him a disservice.”
People who spoke to CBC News in Chrystia Freeland’s riding of University-Rosedale in Toronto say they were surprised to hear that she’d resigned from cabinet, but that it was the right move to make.
The remaining Trudeau defenders say the prime minister deserves to stay on even if it has been a tumultuous time for the party.
“I have confidence in the prime minister. He’s a strong leader, he’s focused on delivering for Canadians,” said Ontario MP Yasir Naqvi.
Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the main focus should be on preparing Canada for expected tariff fight with U.S. president-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to slap a levy on all goods coming into the U.S. shortly after he takes office in the new year.
B.C. MP Joyce Murray, who served in Trudeau’s cabinet before being shuffled out, said MPs should still be loyal to Trudeau.
“I think all of us should be loyal to the prime minister because he has done exactly what he laid out that he would do on behalf of Canadians over the last nine years,” she told reporters.
Ontario MP James Maloney agreed, saying Trudeau has “done a remarkable job, continues to do a remarkable job. He has my confidence.”
Other past Trudeau defenders were more muted than usual.
Ontario MP Judy Sgro, who has served in Parliament for 25 years, said Trudeau is “a smart man.”
“If he feels he needs to make a decision in a different direction, that will be his decision to make and he will make it an appropriate time,” she said.