Fall sitting bookended by Liberal byelection losses ends with Trudeau government in tumult

The House of Commons adjourned on Tuesday, bringing an end to an unstable fall sitting that has been bookended by Liberal byelection losses. The conclusion of the fall sitting comes as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority government is in turmoil.

From facing down a series of Conservative-led confidence votes and failing to pass nearly any legislation amid a persisting privilege debate filibuster, the Liberals were already heading into the holidays embattled.

But the shocking Monday departure of Chrystia Freeland and bombshell letter calling Trudeau out for wanting to move her out of finance amid her opposition to "costly political gimmicks" has revived pressure on the prime minister – both from a greater number of caucus members and from other parties – to resign or call an election.

With Trudeau telling his caucus he'd take time to reflect on the latest developments, and later expressing to loyal Liberal Party of Canada donors that "it is the absolute privilege" of his life to be prime minister, many questions remain, with no plans for the prime minister to attend question period or face reporters on Tuesday.

All of this is playing out as talk of a cabinet shuffle continues to linger, with Trudeau now needing to fill several vacancies on his front bench after a series of ministers have announced they won't be seeking re-election. On this front, the prime minister's chief of staff Katie Telford spent much of Monday meeting one-on-one with ministers, according to sources. Timing of the trip to Rideau Hall remains up in the air.

The majority of MPs voted to wrap up their day's work a few hours ahead of schedule on Tuesday, concluding just after question period. The Liberals and Bloc Quebecois supported the early end, while Conservatives and New Democrats voted against adjournment.

The House of Commons is not scheduled to resume until January 27. 

Resign, or call an election: opposition leaders

With six weeks until MPs are expected back in Ottawa, some sources CTV News has spoken with have indicated that Trudeau's intention is to hold on politically through the holidays. 

Though, with the potential for a prorogation and U.S. president-elect Donald Trump's inauguration scheduled for January 20, a lot about the timing of how the next six weeks will play out, is up in the air.

Compounding this uncertainty, Bloc Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet came out Tuesday calling on Trudeau to visit Rideau Hall and launch the country into a federal election campaign by the end of January.

"I believe that if he wants to stay where he is now, he needs a mandate and he does not have one as we speak. The only way for him to get that, is to call for an election as soon as possible," Blanchet said.

"Because it would be absolutely irresponsible for him to maintain Canada in such an unstable situation for that many months still. If he wants to keep doing the job he does, he's got to go into an election."

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who has been leading the charge for an early "carbon tax election," revived those calls on Tuesday.

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Singling out Jagmeet Singh, Poilievre said the NDP leader must "join with me in signaling non-confidence to bring down this government as soon as legally possible."

Poilievre also talked about Freeland’s resignation, calling Monday’s events a “circus.”

“Yesterday, we were reminded that if you hire clowns, you get a circus, Poilievre said. “But no one should be laughing because there are real consequences for yesterday's chaotic Liberal clown show.”

On Monday, stopping short of committing to stop propping his government up the next time a confidence question arises – now not expected until the 2025 sitting – Singh called on Trudeau to go.

"The prime minister is more focused on himself and on infighting. The prime minister cannot remain in that position. Will he resign?" Singh asked during a heated question period on Monday.

An NDP source speaking on background Tuesday said that it's for them right now less a question of Trudeau needing to quit by a certain date, and they'll continue to go case-by-case based on what's on the table for Canadians.

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Stopping briefly to speak to reporters outside of West Block on Tuesday, Singh doubled down.

"I said what I said. Trudeau has to go," he said, walking away before answering why he's not pulled his support yet.

Liberal MP says 40-50 MPs want Trudeau to resign

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Liberal MPs who have already publicly urged for Trudeau to step down, doubled down on that call and indicated their cause may be spreading. Other MPs restated their confidence in the prime minister, pointing to his reputation as a strong campaigner.

New Brunswick MP Wayne Long says there are “certainly more MPs” who want to see a resignation compared to the previous caucus revolt in the fall, saying there are “40 to 50 right now.”

“I would say one third of us want the prime minister to step down immediately. Another third are resided that it is what it is and we’ll just lose and not open our mouths or say anything. And there’s another third that are very supportive of the prime minister,” Long said.

Long also called Freeland’s resignation as a “vote of non-confidence in the prime minister” and said it should lead to a different response from Trudeau.

“The prime minister is living in a false reality. He’s delusional if he thinks we can continue like this,” Long said, who also believes a Liberal leadership race is possible before the next federal election. “It’s unfair to us as MPs. It’s unfair to the ministers, and most importantly it’s unfair to the country. We need to move on with a new direction.”

British Columbia MP Ken Hardie said the prime minister should not stay on as leader after his own reflection following Monday’s emergency caucus meeting.

“The reckoning that has to happen right now is whether or not the prime minister enjoys the confidence of the country. It’s not so much the caucus really that matters. It’s what Canadians are feeling,” Hardie said. “We’ve certainly been getting signals for some time that the confidence isn’t there. So, he has some decisions to make.”

Quebec MP Anthony Housefather, meanwhile, says he wants to see the party head in a new direction.

“Canadians want a change. Just like governments across the world get stale after a certain period of time. Leaders have a specific shelf life in a social media age,” Housesafther said. “I personally would like to see a Liberal party with a more centrist vision offered by a different leader.”

'Everybody should take a break'

A traffic light turns orange near the Peace Tower, Tuesday, Dec.17, 2024 in Ottawa. Tuesday is the last day of the parliamentary session before the holiday break. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

A number of Liberals said they think that Trudeau does need to at least reconsider his next steps, but wouldn’t say how long that thinking should take.

The last time Trudeau told his MPs he was reflecting amid the first wave of resignation calls, it took less than 24 hours for the prime minister to say he was staying on.

"I think the prime minister needs to take some time and we need to give him time and space to make sure we move forward with what’s right, what’s good for Canadians, the country, and the party," said Manitoba MP and Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal.

Quebec Liberal MP Joel Lightbound said that while he's been loyal to Trudeau, "loyalty is not a one-way street and I think he should reflect on his future."

"I think that the government has achieved a great deal in the past two years, the prime minister has achieved a great deal. There's more work to do, and for that reason, I'm glad the prime minister is reflecting on the way ahead," Ontario MP Peter Fragiskatos said. "At the heart of that reflection I think, needs to be a view that says that no individual is bigger than the country, and so that's where I'm at."

Quebec Liberal MP Francis Scarpaleggia said as MPs decamp for the holidays, "everybody should take a break."

"We should dial down the drama, for sure. And, I think what the prime minister has to think about is, does he have the right vision for the country? I believe that our Liberal vision is the right vision for the country. Does he have the right team in place at the moment to carry that vision?" he said. "It's not a binary sort of situation, it is very complex."

Prince Edward Island MP Sean Casey, one of the first Liberals to push for the PM to resign, cautioned that he's not certain this round of Trudeau reflection will end differently.

"He seems to be absolutely committed," he said. "If his mind is made up… I'm reluctant to say it's bad faith, but it's no different."  

Conservatives clinch B.C. seat in byelection

Liberals' uncertainty about the electoral prospects so long as Trudeau is at the helm, comes as the Conservatives just picked up another seat in the House of Commons. On Monday night, former MP Tamara Jansen won the Cloverdale-Langley City, B.C. byelection.

Securing her return to Ottawa, Jansen handily beat out Liberal candidate Madison Fleischer, who was running to hold the seat Liberal John Aldag won back from the Conservatives in 2021. Aldag quit earlier this year to run provincially for the NDP, but was defeated.

Jansen won the riding – which has swung between the Liberals and Conservatives in recent campaigns – with two-thirds of the vote, while the Liberals slipped to securing just 16 per cent of the vote, not far ahead of the NDP candidate who clinched 12.5 per cent support.

The byelection is just the latest in a series of losses for the Liberals at the ballot box. On the evening of September 16, the first day of the fall House sitting, the Liberals lost LaSalle-Émard-Verdun, Que., to the Bloc Quebecois, and placed third Elmwood Transcona, Man. 

At the time, the fall races were seen as a real test for the Trudeau brand, particularly in the Montreal seat, considering the shocking June loss to the Conservatives in the longtime safe Liberal seat of Toronto-St. Paul's, Ont.

Facing similar leadership questions then, the prime minister said he was going to "stay focused" on governing.

Intel on Trudeau-Freeland falling out, next steps

Details of how the Trudeau-Freeland falling out went down have been trickling out across news outlets, and CTV News has confirmed after a prolonged period of friction, the prime minister informed Freeland over Zoom last Friday that he intended to shuffle her out of finance.

That conversation took place just ahead of Freeland making a pre-announcement connected to Monday's fall economic update, and according to a Liberal source, it was then that she learned Trudeau wanted to move her into a Canada-U.S. relations role.

In her mind, the source said, Freeland would have no department, and therefore wouldn't "have any of the tools needed" to succeed so it was "not a viable option."

On the other side of the weekend, Freeland did call Trudeau to tell him personally that she was leaving her cabinet roles before her letter went live online.

CTV News has also heard from multiple sources that amid Monday night's snap caucus meeting, Freeland hugged Trudeau before she left.

As for what Trudeau does now, questions remain. He's yet to face reporters' questions about the series of events that have unfolded in the last 24 hours, but did speak on Tuesday night at the national Liberal caucus holiday party.

Taking the stage around 8 p.m. EST, to applause, Trudeau made a quick quip off the top about the state of affairs.

“It has been an eventful couple of days, it hasn’t been easy, and that’s why I’m so happy to see you guys,” Trudeau said. "It’s hard not to feel happy when we’re like this, among Liberals, among family. Because that’s what we really are, a big family.

“But like most families, sometimes we have fights around the holidays. But of course, like most families, we find our way through it,” he continued, before moving on to giving thanks to Liberal staffers, volunteers, and supporters in an otherwise base-rallying speech.

“In politics, there's always tough days and big challenges, but this team doesn't hold the record for the longest minority in Canadian history because we shy away from these moments,” the prime minister said. “We put in the work, whether it's easy or hard.”

Freeland, seen entering the Liberal event in downtown Ottawa with members of her family before Trudeau spoke, said she was “happy” to be attending with them.

With files from CTV News' Vassy Kapelos, Colton Praill, Rachel Hanes, Mike LeCouteur, and Judy Trinh