Liberal caucus meeting | We must not give in to panic, plead Quebec elected officials

(London) Justin Trudeau’s Quebec MPs displayed a united front behind their leader on Wednesday, pleading sometimes that we should “not give in to panic”, sometimes that the Prime Minister remained the man for the job, and often by downplaying the importance of polls.

The elected officials who paraded in front of the cameras at the convention center in London, Ontario, all gave a vote of confidence in their leader, whose popularity plummeted over the summer, to the benefit of that of the Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.

Minister Diane Lebouthillier used an analogy to explain the desire for change that seems to drive the electorate in the country. “When we were teenagers, we probably would have, at some point, all gotten rid of our parents and changed them,” she illustrated.

She also argued, like several of her colleagues, that Justin Trudeau had led his troops to victory in 2015, in 2019, then in 2021. And the Liberals, said Minister Pablo Rodriguez, “are capable of renewing themselves” .

Nonetheless, “I think there are people who feel nervous,” added her colleague Pascale St-Onge when asked to react to the comments of Liberal elected officials who question, under the covered by anonymity, the leadership of Justin Trudeau.

“Certainly, the Quebec caucus is united behind the leader, and I am certain that with the discussions, at the end of the national caucus, it will be the same thing,” she continued, noting that “the only poll which is going to count, it’s the elections, and it’s not now.”

Same story coming from Minister Steven Guilbeault. “There is indeed concern, but the best thing to do […], is not to panic. You have to take a deep breath. I think the last thing people want to see is a federal election,” he said.

And in the meantime, the government is aware that some Canadians are suffering due to the cost of living and difficulties accessing housing, indicated Minister Mélanie Joly: “We know that people are frustrated with the inflation. […] We feel that the rise in interest rates worries them, and that’s normal.”

Before kicking off the national caucus meeting on Wednesday afternoon, Prime Minister Trudeau will make an announcement on housing. He will be accompanied by the minister responsible for the file, Sean Fraser, with whom he will have visited an affordable housing development site in London.

A small welcoming committee awaited the Liberals in the southwestern Ontario town; a few cars circulated honking near the convention center where the meeting is being held, as well as around certain hotels where some elected officials are staying on Tuesday.