Justin Trudeau Striked A Deal With Political Rivals To Ensure His Position as Prime-Minister

Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, has struck a deal with a political rival that would keep in him power until 2025. In exchange for support from the New Democratic party on key votes, Trudeau’s Liberals have pledged progress on national pharmaceutical and dental care programs. “With so much instability around us, Canadians need stability,” said the prime minister as he announced the deal with the NDP on Tuesday morning. Trudeau said “nobody benefits” when parliament “doesn’t work properly”, and that his Liberals would look for common goals with the NDP and other opposition parties. Trudeau was elected to a third term in September, but commands only a minority of seats in parliament, meaning he requires the support of other parties to govern. Minority governments have a relatively short lifespan and governing parties attempt to legislate with the ever-present fear of a looming election. Under a confidence and supply agreement, an opposition party agrees to not vote to defeat the government for a period of time. With Tuesday’s announcement, the NDP leader, Jagmeet Singh, and his party will support Trudeau’s government on confidence votes like the federal budget. The leftwing NDP has backed Trudeau’s Liberals in key votes since 2019.