Latest news with #OntarioLiberal
Hamilton Spectator
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
‘Tired of this crap': Liberal MPPs rally around Bonnie Crombie after criticism from Nate Erskine-Smith
Liberal MPPs are rallying behind embattled leader Bonnie Crombie in the wake of the broadside against her fired by former rival Nate Erskine-Smith . With Crombie facing a leadership review at the Ontario Liberals' annual general meeting Sept. 12-14 in Toronto, Erskine-Smith wrote an 1,177-word email blast urging 'change in our party.' 'Of course I have an interest,' acknowledged the Beaches-East York MP, who was runner-up in the provincial leadership in 2023 and then briefly served as federal housing minister before being demoted by Prime Minister Mark Carney. Erskine-Smith criticized Crombie and her team for 'trying to socialize the idea that an untenable 51 per cent mandate is an acceptable result' at the September review, insisting 'two-thirds support should be the minimum expectation.' Sources told the Star that some Liberals have privately complained to Carney's office about the MP's intervention Friday. But given Erskine-Smith's public grumbling that he felt ' disrespected ' when the prime minister removed him from cabinet, it's unlikely any such appeal would have much effect. Liberal MPPs, meanwhile, took to social media to defend Crombie with some choice words for the backbencher. 'The Ontario Liberal leadership isn't a backup plan or safety net. Building for the future takes hard work and someone who is going to stick it out,' said MPP Stephen Blais (Orleans). That's a reference to Erskine-Smith doing little to help the Grits after losing the leadership contest, including in the Feb. 27 snap election won by Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives with 43 per cent of the popular vote. The MP insisted he 'was happy to work for a winning campaign in support of local MPP Mary-Margaret McMahon, an energetic force in community engagement' in February. MPP Stephanie Smyth (St. Paul's), one of the five newly elected Liberals, praised Crombie for returning the party to official status in the legislature, taking 30 per cent of the vote and improving fundraising. 'Let's not go backwards,' said Smyth. Still, the Liberals' inefficient vote led to just 14 seats in the 124-member legislature compared to 80 for the PCs. The NDP held 27 seats with just 18.5 per cent of the vote. Mike Schreiner's Greens won two ridings and Independent Bobbi Ann Brady was re-elected. Crombie failed to win a seat, losing Mississauga East-Cooksville to Tory Silvia Gualtieri, a setback for a three-term Mississauga mayor. She has said she will contest a byelection when a viable riding opens up. Rookie MPP Rob Cerjanec (Ajax) said he was 'tired of this crap' from Erskine-Smith and other insurgents. 'The last campaign had its issues and the seat result wasn't what we wanted but there were also some successes. I've had good conversations with Bonnie Crombie about what went wrong and what we need to do to win,' said Cerjanec. 'She agrees we need to do things differently. Another leadership race isn't going to help us build the party.' Liberal House Leader John Fraser emphasized he 'will be supporting Bonnie at the AGM' and implored other Grits to do so. 'Our cause is a collective one, not one of personal ambition,' said Fraser in a veiled shot at Erskine-Smith. MPP Andrea Hazell (Scarborough-Guildwood) noted she has 'always been passionate about women in leadership and I support Bonnie Crombie in bringing Ontario back on track.' Newly elected MPP Jonathan Tsao (Don Valley North) praised the leader for putting 'our party first.' 'While others chase headlines, she's laser-focused on one thing: standing up for the people of Ontario and defeating Doug Ford and the PCs next election,' said Tsao. MPP Lucille Collard (Ottawa-Vanier) said although she supported third-place finisher Yasir Naqvi in 2023, Crombie 'has shown skill in growing our party's appeal and presenting serious policy.' 'You may not agree with her on everything, and that's fine. The OLP has momentum and the last thing we need is another leadership race,' said Collard.
Hamilton Spectator
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Bonnie Crombie backers warn a Liberal leadership contest would only help Doug Ford
Backers of Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie are sounding the alarm about the perils of plunging into another leadership race later this summer. 'Team Bonnie' sent out an email to Liberal members Friday warning against 'giving Doug Ford exactly what he wants: a distracted, divided party that can't deliver for Ontarians.' The group, which appears to be using the mailing list from Crombie's successful 2023 Liberal leadership campaign, is urging members to rally behind her at the party's annual general meeting Sept. 12-14 at Toronto's Sheraton Centre. 'This is not a leadership review or a campaign review — this is a vote on whether or not to call a new leadership election,' the Team Bonnie missive states. 'Here's what a new leadership election would mean: our party would have to fund another leadership race instead of paying off campaign debt; momentum would stall — no focus on building up for policy conventions or riding capacity; legislative work at Queen's Park would suffer as the party shifts inward again; a delay of opening nominations for at least 18 months, until a new leader is elected.' Crombie's supporters said such uncertainty would only benefit Ford's three-term Progressive Conservatives, who were re-elected Feb. 27. 'We have a choice: build up our party and unite behind a leader who's already taken us this far or surrender our gains and tread water — while Doug Ford continues to plunder our province for his personal gain,' continued the missive. 'Let's move forward, not backward. Be part of strengthening our party. Help us run up the score for Bonnie at the AGM this September!' The Team Bonnie push comes as a rival group called New Leaf Liberals — co-founded by a backer of MP Nate Erskine-Smith (Beaches-East York), runner-up to Crombie in 2023 — has a petition saying she should resign if she falls short of 66 per cent support at the review. As of Friday afternoon, there were 253 signatures on the insurgents' online petition , many of whom just put their first names, such as 'Pat from London' and 'Will from Toronto,' or were anonymous like 'an Ontario Liberal from Waterloo.' Under the Liberal constitution, Crombie only needs to clear the threshold of 50 per cent to thwart a new leadership contest. Her Grits took 30 per cent of the popular vote in February — behind the Ford Tories' 43 per cent, but ahead of the 18.5 per cent of Marit Stiles's New Democrats — and regained official status in the legislature for the first time since 2018. But the former three-term Mississauga mayor lost Mississauga East-Cooksville to Tory Silvia Gualtieri and the Liberals inefficient vote led to just 14 seats in the 124-member legislature to 80 for the PCs and 27 for the NDP. Mike Schreiner's Greens won two ridings and Independent Bobbi Ann Brady was re-elected. In a video message to members earlier this week , Crombie said that her post-election listening tour with nine regional meetings revealed 'some common themes, constructive criticisms and some suggestions.' Prior to Ford's Tories winning power in 2018, the Liberals governed Ontario for almost 15 years under premiers Kathleen Wynne and Dalton McGuinty.
Hamilton Spectator
17-07-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Bonnie Crombie admits Ontario Liberals made mistakes in losing campaign, says she'll ‘address our weaknesses'
As an Ontario Liberal leadership review vote looms later this summer , Bonnie Crombie is going on the offensive. The Liberal leader has released a four-minute video aimed at party members, acknowledging the shortcomings of her Feb. 27 provincial election campaign and promising changes going forward. Crombie, who has spent the past few months travelling Ontario to huddle with Liberals, said party stalwarts have been candid with her about what is needed to topple Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives. 'I've heard some common themes, constructive criticisms and some suggestions,' she says, staring into the camera. 'We could have opened candidate nominations earlier to allow more time for local fundraising and door-knocking,' adds Crombie, who herself was not nominated in Mississauga East-Cooksville until shortly before the election and then lost to Tory Silvia Gualtieri . 'And in response to that, I'll say that right now, we intend to open nominations in many ridings as of January 2026 to ensure that we have a head start recruiting candidates,' intones the leader. 'We could have done more to lift up and engage the rural and northern parts of Ontario, too,' she says, referring to the fact the Liberals' support is concentrated in and around Toronto and Ottawa. Crombie says she plans 'to address this issue head-on' to 'ensure that there are dedicated resources, such as staff, in place to support rural and northern ridings long before the next writ is dropped. 'We will use the learnings from this campaign to make sure the next campaign is run differently. We must evaluate and build on our strengths and identify and address our weaknesses. We'll also be having hard internal conversations about the choices made and speaking with our campaign leadership team to identify the successes and the failures.' With a mandatory leadership review vote at the Liberals' Sept. 12-14 annual general meeting at the Sheraton Centre in Toronto, Crombie is moving to shore up support. To that end, her video touted the fact the Grits won 30 per cent of the popular vote — behind the Tories' 43 per cent, but ahead of the 18.5 per cent of Marit Stiles's New Democrats — and returned the party to official status in the legislature for the first time since 2018. That latter achievement is 'unlocking millions in resources to support our team with policy, research and communications efforts,' she says. 'All of our caucus members were re-elected. We picked up five new seats. We improved our vote share in 102 of the 124 ridings. We came in second in 77 ridings.' However, the Liberals' inefficient vote, a perennial challenge for the centrist party, meant they only won 14 seats in the 124-member legislature to 80 for the PCs and 27 for the NDP. Mike Schreiner's Greens won two ridings and Independent Bobbi Ann Brady was re-elected. Despite a unanimous post-election endorsement from the Liberal caucus and party executive, there are rumblings of discontent. A small group called New Leaf Liberals — co-founded by a backer of MP Nate Erskine-Smith (Beaches-East York), runner-up to Crombie in the party's 2023 leadership contest — says she should resign if she fails to win 66 per cent support in the review. As of Wednesday afternoon, only 242 people had signed the insurgents' online petition , many with just their first names. In an interview with the Star earlier this summer, Crombie insisted she was 'confident' she would secure the leadership review threshold of more than 50 per cent as required by the Liberal constitution.
Toronto Star
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Star
Shunned by Mark Carney, Toronto MP says ‘it's impossible not to feel disrespected'
OTTAWA—Toronto MP and former housing minister Nate Erskine-Smith says 'it's impossible not to feel disrespected' after Prime Minister Mark Carney removed him from cabinet. 'I ran again because of the opportunity to make an even bigger difference around the cabinet table and to help fix the housing crisis,' the Beaches—East York MP said in a post on X. 'The way it played out doesn't sit right and it's impossible not to feel disrespected. But I'm mostly disappointed that my team and I won't have the chance to build on all we accomplished with only a short runway.' The 10-year MP, who had previously said he would not run again in this election and came second to Bonnie Crombie in the 2023 Ontario Liberal leadership race, was promoted to cabinet in December in one of Justin Trudeau's final moves as prime minister. When Carney became Liberal leader and prime minister in March, he kept Erskine-Smith in cabinet. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW But on Tuesday, Erskine-Smith was one of three Toronto MPs removed from Carney's front-bench in a major overhaul that introduced many new faces but maintained the tradition of having a significant GTA representation in the federal cabinet. Overall, Carney's first cabinet since the election includes nine ministers from Toronto and the GTA, with five new faces, including former broadcaster and friend of Carney Evan Solomon, the rookie Toronto Centre MP who is now Canada's first ever minister of artificial intelligence. Federal Politics Live chat: The Conservative party, Carney's cabinet and politics in 2025 Star staff Reached by the Star, Erskine-Smith would not comment further. But in his social media posts, the MP long known as an outspoken parliamentarian on the more progressive side of the Liberal party, said 'you never know what the future holds.' 'But for now, I'll be working hard for my neighbours here in Beaches—East York, restarting the Uncommons podcast, and returning to Parliament with a renewed sense of freedom,' he said. Bill Blair, the MP for Scarborough West who was the chief of the Toronto Police Service for 10 years before entering federal politics in 2015, and Willowdale's Ali Ehsassi, who was a minister for a brief stint since March, were also removed from Carney's cabinet Tuesday. Blair has held several ministerial roles since 2018, including public safety and national defence. And the Liberals spent thousands of dollars on ads narrated by Blair in the final weeks of the election highlighting their gun-control agenda and their approach to tackling rising crime. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Carney has named public safety, long a Conservative attacking point, as one of the Liberals' key priorities next to the Canada-U.S. relationship and addressing the cost of living, and even appointed Brampton North—Caledon's Ruby Sahota as a secretary of state focused on combating crime on Tuesday. The issue has been a significant concern in suburban ridings in the Toronto area and Liberal minister Kamal Khera lost her Brampton West seat in an election campaign where her opponent, Conservative Amarjeet Gill focused heavily on crime. Gta 'The most honest reflection of the country': Inside the 905 — the ridings that helped deny Mark Carney a majority Noor Javed, David Rider, Raju Mudhar Three of the 10 secretaries of state appointed Tuesday are also from Toronto and the GTA. Here are the ministers from the GTA: Shafqat Ali (Brampton—Chinguacousy Park), president of the Treasury Board Anita Anand (Oakville East), minister of foreign affairs Gary Anandasangaree (Scarborough—Guildwood–Rouge Park), minister of public safety Julie Dabrusin (Toronto—Danforth), minister of environment and climate change Chrystia Freeland (University—Rosedale), minister of transport and internal trade Tim Hodgson (Markham—Thornhill), minister of energy and natural resources Maninder Sidhu (Brampton East), minister of international trade Evan Solomon (Toronto Centre), minister of artificial intelligence and digital innovation and minister responsible for the federal economic development agency for southern Ontario Rechie Valdez (Mississauga—Streetsville), minister of women and gender equality and secretary of state for small business and tourism Here are the secretaries of state from the GTA: Ruby Sahota (Brampton North—Caledon), combating crime Adam van Koeverden (Burlington North—Milton West), sport John Zerucelli (Etobicoke North), labour Politics Headlines Newsletter Get the latest news and unmatched insights in your inbox every evening Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. Please enter a valid email address. Sign Up Yes, I'd also like to receive customized content suggestions and promotional messages from the Star. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Politics Headlines Newsletter You're signed up! You'll start getting Politics Headlines in your inbox soon. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page.
Global News
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Ford says Carney must avoid being ‘bullied' in White House meeting with Trump
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says Prime Minister Mark Carney must make sure not to get 'bullied' in his first meeting with United States President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday. Ford made the comments at an unrelated event on Monday, where he said he was confident in the prime minister ahead of his first trip to meet face-to-face with Trump after an election campaign focused on the president. Carney departed for Washington, D.C., on Monday afternoon in preparation for Tuesday's meeting, his first trip to the United States since he was elected to form a minority government in a race where he talked tough on Trump. With the meeting looming, the president was dismissive and said he was 'not sure what he wants to see me about.' Ford said he wanted to make sure Carney didn't get pushed around in the potentially key White House summit. Story continues below advertisement 'I just mentioned to him, don't get bullied because we know where he's going, and stand firm,' Ford said on Monday morning. 'We're their number one customer — and yes, they're our number one customer — but just be strong, we have your back.' Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy While the premier offered advice to Carney ahead of his first major diplomatic mission to the United States, his office confirmed Ford himself had not been invited to attend. The Progressive Conservatives recently won a third successive majority on the promise that another majority would strengthen Ontario's hand to deal with Trump. While Ford has travelled to Washington, D.C., several times and met with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, he has not spoken to the president. But at Queen's Park, even Ford's critics were sympathetic to the fact the premier was not included in the meeting and said it was appropriate that the prime minister meet with the president one-on-one for his first Washington visit. 'I think in this first meeting, I think it is important that they lay the groundwork, prime minister to president,' Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie said. 'I think it's very important that the two meet one-on-one.' Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner also suggested the meeting made sense. 'You know what? I think Prime Minister Carney deserves an opportunity to have a one-on-one meeting with Trump, so I'm not going to criticize that,' he said. Story continues below advertisement NDP Leader Marit Stiles, however, suggested Ford's lack of invitation was a poor reflection on how he was handling Ontario's role in the U.S.-Canada trade war. 'I think at the end of the day, the premier has not proven himself to be ready for the fight,' she said. 'He's taken a laissez-faire approach to this, and that's not what Canada needs right now. We need people who are going to get up and fight for every single job in every single sector.'
