More MPs admit anti-Trudeau tide rising

It’s become too obvious to hide. Liberal MPs publicly acknowledged Monday that some of their constituents want Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to go.

- ALTHIA RAJ

Using words like “too preachy” and “tired,” a handful of MPs told the Star there is a clear appetite for change, and some worry the prime minister’s unpopularity will affect their own bids for re-election.

There’s “a sentiment of exasperation, I would say, in many people,” offered Quebec MP Alexandra Mendès. “A lot of the comments bordered on, ‘We are sick and tired of being preached to.’ ”

But while Mendès said Trudeau’s presence is “not helpful,” she and other Liberal MPs who are gathering for a caucus retreat this week in Nanaimo stopped short of calling for the prime minister to step down as their leader. “I personally don’t think he should go, but my constituents definitely do, and that is the message they’ve been asking me to convey,” she said.

“Some out there in the community certainly believe it’s time for him to move on,” said Nova Scotia MP Kody Blois. “There’s others that actually think he needs to stay on the job.”

“I still believe that we have the best plan to present to Canadians,” said Ontario MP Francis Drouin, “but I think people have lost an emotional connection to the prime minister.”

The calls for Trudeau to go are unlikely to lead to a full blowout during the Liberals’ three days of meetings, and the prime minister has made it clear he plans to stick around for another term.

But there are now more MPs publicly willing to say what everyone has been hearing for the past year, and it may lead to more fireworks and tougher conversations behind closed doors this week.

Behind the scenes, there are also questions being asked about a surprise guest of honour — former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney, who, as the Star reported Friday, has been tapped to advise Trudeau and the Liberal party on economic matters. He is expected to brief MPs on Tuesday morning.