Quebec Liberal Caucus Supports Justin Trudeau Despite “Concerns”

Photo: Spencer Colby archives The Canadian Press Stéphane Lauzon, chair of the Liberal Quebec caucus, believes that Canadians do not want to be called to the polls.

Émilie Bergeron – The Canadian Press

Published and updated on September 5

• Canada

Quebec's federal Liberal MPs are all united behind their leader, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, assures the province's caucus chair, Stéphane Lauzon, even though he admits that the Conservatives' lead in the polls worries some MPs.

“Indeed, there are concerns. We follow the polls like everyone else,” said Mr. Lauzon in an interview with The Canadian Press at the end of a retreat that brought together the Quebec caucus in Bromont.

The Argenteuil — La Petite-Nation elected official said that voting intentions were far from being in his favor when he ran for federal office.

“When I ran — I started the process in 2014 — I barely had a 10% chance of winning my election,” said the man who managed to get elected in the 2015 election and in the two other elections that brought the Liberals back to power.

The latest poll by Léger gives 43% of voting intentions to the Conservatives, compared to 25% to the Liberals, which is in line with the lead attributed to Pierre Poilievre’s troops over the past year.

In Quebec, the Bloc Québécois had 29% support at the end of August, compared to 27% for the Liberals and 23% for the Conservatives, again according to Léger. The New Democrats come in last in the province with 14% of voting intentions.

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“What people are telling us at the door is that they don’t want Pierre Poilievre as Prime Minister,” Mr. Lauzon maintains.

The meeting of Quebec Liberal elected officials was an opportunity for them to share what they heard on the ground, summarized the caucus chair. Prime Minister Trudeau took part in the discussions.

Eyes set on the by-election in LaSalle — Émard — Verdun

During their retreat in Bromont, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh announced that his party was tearing up its agreement with the Liberals that ensured the minority government would remain in power until June 2025.

“The NDP, with its dissolution [of the agreement] with the Liberals, has caused us to be a little whipped up by saying: 'We have to do even more. “We need to work harder to deliver to Quebecers and Canadians,” said Mr. Lauzon.

The Liberals' priorities remain access to housing and helping Canadians meet the cost of living, Mr. Lauzon insisted.

“Once again, we must work with the Quebec government, with our municipalities, to ensure that the lot of our Quebecers is improved,” he maintained.

While the end of the agreement with the NDP increases the likelihood that an election will be called soon, Mr. Lauzon believes that the Canadian population does not want to be called to the polls.

“That's not what we heard this summer,” he said. In any case, he assures that the Liberals are ready to fight if an election scenario were to materialize.

In any case, all eyes will be on the expected results of the by-election in LaSalle — Émard — Verdun on September 16. Mr. Lauzon, who participated in the Liberals’ field work during the summer, said he felt “enthusiasm.”

The riding, located southwest of Montreal, has long been a Liberal stronghold. Former cabinet minister David Lametti held it from 2015 until his resignation last January.

But with the Liberals trailing in the polls, LaSalle—Émard—Verdun could be the scene of a three-way fight.

The Quebec Liberal MNAs’ retreat came just days before the national caucus, which is scheduled to meet next week in Nanaimo, B.C.