Scheer says Liberals approaching talks to get legislation passed ‘in good faith’

Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer talks about his party pledging to cooperate with the federal government to pass bills and avoid an election.

OTTAWA — Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer says he believes the Liberals are having conversations “in good faith” with his party to get legislation passed in the House of Commons, though he wouldn’t say whether the spirit of co-operation is spurred by efforts to avoid an election.

“I believe the conversations are being held in good faith,” Scheer said in an interview on CTV Power Play with Vassy Kapelos on Tuesday. “I find that the last few weeks of meetings, that there’s been some progress ... we’ll wait see what actually happens in the end result, but I’ll say that it seems like the conversations are being held in good faith.”

Scheer made the comment specifically in reference to the Budget Implementation Act, which the government needs to pass to enact the legislative policies laid out in the budget that require new laws or amendments to existing laws.

There are portions of the bill — which is currently being studied at committee — to which the Conservatives are opposed, and which they’re calling on the Liberals to amend. Because the Budget Implementation Act will be a confidence vote, its failure would trigger an election.

There are certain parts of the bill that would afford ministers extra powers the Conservatives contend should be removed. When asked by Kapelos whether the Liberals might amend that section of the bill, Scheer didn’t rule it out.

Prime Minister Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, meanwhile, sat down for a one-on-one meeting on Parliament Hill last week, later calling for greater collaboration between parties.

The Liberal government currently holds 169 seats, three seats shy of a majority, so it needs opposition support to pass legislation.

Asked directly on Parliament Hill Tuesday whether the Liberals have signed any formal agreement with the Conservatives to avoid an election, House Leader Steven MacKinnon said: “No.”

And, asked the same question by Kapelos, Scheer said: “There’s no formal deal.”

“What’s happening is what our leader, Pierre Poilievre, committed to right after the election,” he said, before pointing to the Liberals as to blame for the cost of living, crime, inflation, and federal deficits.

“We said right from the get-go, if the Liberals want to address these areas that we’ve been fighting for, for the past few years, we would allow legislation to pass that at the very least did no further harm,” he added. “Or if, in the case of what Mark Carney claims he needs to get results, let’s see if his approach will work.”

Asked several times whether the shift toward collaboration in the House is intended to stave off an election — one which the Conservatives could potentially lose — Scheer wouldn’t say.

“I refuse to accept the premise that there’s a change in posture,” he said.

Scheer said while he believes the Liberals have caused the issues Canadians face, “this is the government that they voted for,” so the Conservatives are willing to see if Carney’s policies yield positive results.

Late last month, Carney also dismissed speculation about a possible snap election, saying his government is “focused on results.”

You can watch Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer’s full interview on CTV Power Play in the video player at the top of this article.

With files from CTV News’ Stephanie Ha and Mike Le Couteur