Health Minister Mark Holland speaks about new national pharmacare legislation during a news conference in Ottawa on Feb. 29, 2024.PATRICK DOYLE/The Canadian Press
Health Minister Mark Holland is ruling out the need for a secret, internal vote on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s future, arguing that what discontent may exist in caucus can be hammered out behind closed doors.
Mr. Holland was one of the few ministers Tuesday willing to stop before the cameras and make a lengthy public case for Mr. Trudeau’s continued leadership ahead of a highly anticipated caucus meeting Wednesday where backbench MPs are expected to stand up and call for the Prime Minister to go.
But how strong in number the caucus of dissenting Liberals MPs actually is remains unclear. On her way into cabinet, Ruby Sahota, responsible for caucus discipline in her role as whip, said the situation in caucus is “fine.” She did not expand.
On the other hand, Gender Equality Minister Marci Ien didn’t dispute the dissent is real, but described the Liberals as a “large tent” where “people are entitled to their opinions.”
“I respect various opinions, but I’m here to give you mine, and that is that I unequivocally support this Prime Minister.”
That there is a range of concerns being presented is healthy, Mr. Holland said.
“Having a debate as a party about our future and where we should go is something that I welcome,” he said “I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I think it’s a sign of a strong democratic caucus.”
Three MPs have publicly stated they believe Mr. Trudeau needs to step down.
While there is believed to be a written demand asking him to do so, the number of Liberal MPs who have signed it has not been confirmed. Last week The Globe and Mail reported that at least 20 in Mr. Trudeau’s caucus were expected to endorse the letter, but some MPs cautioned that may have softened after a cabinet shuffle was put on the agenda. MPs Wayne Long and Sean Casey have both said publicly they signed the letter. Most other MPs have denied any knowledge of it or declined to comment.
Among the more than two dozen Liberal MPs who have spoken with The Globe over the past two weeks, there was widespread sentiment that Mr. Trudeau must claim responsibility for the party’s failure to connect with Canadians over the last 18 months.
To some that means resign, but to others it means just an acknowledgment that the status quo isn’t working and there must be some kind of major change.
MPs cite varying reasons for their frustration. Some point to the loss of two safe seats in by-elections this year. One pointed all the way back to the fall of 2022 and a promised plan to take on Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who had just been elected leader – but the plan never seemed to materialize. When asked by The Globe what they made of the current tensions, one long-time MP simply hung them on the Liberals nearing their 10th anniversary in government and people’s refusal to accept that their time in office might be up.
Still, how many will stand up and say any of that – let alone directly call for Mr. Trudeau to go – during Wednesday’s open microphone session at caucus is unknown. MPs have to submit their names to Liberal caucus chair Brenda Shanahan in order to obtain a speaking slot.
Liberal MPs also don’t have an automatic way to force Mr. Trudeau out, as Conservative MPs did when they chose to vote out former leader Erin O’Toole in 2022 under the provisions of a law known as the Reform Act. Parliamentary caucuses must vote at their first meeting after a general election on whether or not to adopt the legislation, and the Liberals did not do so after the 2021 campaign.
That doesn’t rule out MPs taking a secret ballot vote to have a clear means of expressing to Mr. Trudeau the scope of the discontent – a sentiment Mr. Holland and other ministers say is not as widespread as others suggest.
But Mr. Holland said a vote isn’t necessary.
“Every single one of us is expressing an opinion and caucus, just like the process of governing, is about building consensus, and if that consensus is not present, it’s pretty evident,” Mr. Holland said.
He went on to describe Mr. Trudeau as someone who takes punches like no one he has ever seen, gets attacked relentlessly and is blamed for every problem in the world.
“This is a guy who’s taken responsibility for everything, tried to find solutions to every problem, and yes, right now, that means everybody’s blaming him,” Mr. Holland said.
Against the backdrop of the discontent, Mr. Trudeau will soon shuffle his cabinet to account for the four ministers who last week declared they weren’t running again. The party has also recently named Andrew Bevan, the chief of staff to the Finance Minister, as the campaign director.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller, who is also a long-time personal friend of Mr. Trudeau, called what’s happening in caucus “garbage” and said it takes time away from defining the Liberals’ main rival, the Conservative Leader.
When asked whether he could personally get re-elected under Mr. Trudeau’s leadership, Mr. Miller was succinct: “Absolutely, but it’s up to Canadians to decide.”