Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday faced the prospect of losing power after a key ally, New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh, announced that he would introduce a motion of no-confidence in the House of Commons, potentially leading to an election.
The motion would require the support of all opposition parties, including the right-of-center Conservatives, who have been calling for an election. If successful, it would end Trudeau’s more than nine years in power and trigger a national election.
Singh’s decision to support the motion comes after a string of polls showing the Liberal party, which has been struggling with voter fatigue and anger over issues such as high prices and a housing crisis, would be badly defeated by the Conservatives.
The opposition parties accuse Trudeau of being too beholden to big business, and Singh has promised to put forward a “clear motion of non-confidence” in the next sitting of the House of Commons. The leader of the Bloc Quebecois, the fourth-largest opposition party, has also pledged to back the motion.
Trudeau’s office was silent on the matter, but he has been under growing pressure to quit after the shock resignation of his finance minister earlier in the week. A cabinet shuffle was announced shortly after Singh’s statement, but it may be too little, too late to save the prime minister’s job.
