NDP not seeking 'quid pro quo' with Liberals for party status, interim leader says
The newly appointed interim leader of the NDP says the party — at this point — won't be using its limited leverage in Parliament to back the Liberal government in exchange for the perks that come with being a recognized party.
"We need to function as a parliamentary caucus without any quid pro quo. We think it's just important for the functioning of Parliament," Don Davies told CBC's Rosemary Barton Live.
"We're not going to be making any deals with anybody at this point," Davies told host Rosemary Barton in an interview airing Sunday.
The veteran NDP MP was selected as the party's interim leader earlier this week, after former leader Jagmeet Singh resigned on election night.
Singh lost his seat in what was a historically poor showing for the NDP this election. The party was reduced to seven seats — five short of the 12 needed to be a recognized party in the House of Commons.
Being a recognized party in the House grants certain privileges that the NDP has now lost. Those include being guaranteed a question in the daily question period, participation in committees and funding for the leader's office and research bureau.
Still, the party could have leverage in the minority Parliament with the Liberals just a handful of seats short of a majority.
Davies said he is speaking with both Liberals and Conservatives to make the case that the NDP should be granted recognized status — but he said talks with the Liberals haven't included the possibility of backing the government in exchange.
"We think we have a strong case to be made that New Democrats need to bring the voices of 1.2 million Canadians to Parliament," he said.
Davies said the reception from the Liberals and Conservatives so far has been "positive."
"Both parties — and in fact, all of us — understand that we are in a minority. Minority parliaments do require parties to work together … so we're going to work constructively and see what we can arrange," he said.
Beyond the negotiations to gain recognized status in the House, Davies said the NDP is focusing on rebuilding after its collapse on election day. He said the NDP — which has traditionally been considered the party of the working class — needs to reconnect with its roots.
The Conservatives put a heavy emphasis on courting working-class and union voters during the campaign. A number of private-sector unions backed the party as Conservatives picked up seats in areas considered to be blue collar.
Davies said he suspects the Liberals also have attracted some blue-collar voters away from his party in recent years.
"[We need to start] re-engaging and having a discussion from the ground up so that we can reorient the NDP as the party that delivers for working people," Davies said.
cbc.ca
