Monday May 26, 2025 | NATIONAL NEWS – from VICTORIA, BC [Posted at 2:20 pm PT]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Addressing media on the first day of the 45th Parliament, NDP Interim Leader Don Davies said that the NDP will “play a profoundly important role” in the 45th Parliament.
The Liberals have a near-majority (169 seats, where 172 would be a majority) but will still need support from opposition parties. In that context, the NDP could be more important than the Conservatives given how the Conservatives will likely rarely align with Liberal government directions.
He noted today that 1.2 million Canadians voted NDP in the recent election. He wants to “capture the priorities that we heard from working people” and bring those to the House of Commons chamber.
Layton guidelines:
Davies today said he would be guided by two key guidelines that former NDP Leader Jack Layton prescribed:
- “It’s every parliamentarian’s first job to make Parliament work for Canadians.”
- “A good Opposition doesn’t just oppose, it proposes.”
Former NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh was also fundamentally guided by Layton’s approach to the importance of serving people through politics.
Throne Speech expectations through an NDP lens:
The three key planks of the NDP’s leadership for all Canadians in the House of Commons this session will be affordability (groceries, utilities, rent), affordable housing (a foundational “human right and necessity” that anchors people in community and provides a life for families), and health care, as Davies outlined today.
The NDP hopes to work together with parliament for “a strong independent Canadian economy” including “good family-sustaining jobs in every corner of this country”.
Policies that support workers will be championed by the NDP, said Davies today. “A more resilient, independent Canadian economy” is a goal that the NDP supports, he said today, adding that “workers are an important piece of that”.
Health is in the NDP’s DNA, Davies said, noting that Carney’s government intends to deliver $28 billion in cuts in the federal budget. The NDP will “scrutinize very carefully” the budget cuts “to protect the services that Canadians rely upon”.
“We want to make sure that those cuts do not come at the expense of Canadians’ health,” said Davies today, rather that the health-care system be strengthened.
Election devastation:
Davies was appointed as the NDP Interim Leader just a few days after the April 28, 2025 federal election results left the party with just seven seats compared to 24 at dissolution. Most of the NDP MPs are representing ridings in BC.
Vancouver Island is left with only one NDP seat, held by Gord Johns in Courtenay-Alberni.
Long-time NDP MP Alistair MacGregor who held the Cowichan-Malahat-Langford seat from 2015 until this year, was trounced by a vote-split between the Liberals and the Conservatives.
House sits for just a few weeks:
The current session of the House of Commons sees MPs scheduled to sit from May 26 to June 20.
Then there will be a summer break, with MPs returning on September 15.
===== RELATED:
NEWS SECTION: FEDERAL NDP | 45th FEDERAL PARLIAMENT