Following a clean sweep of Monday’s by-elections, the Liberal party has secured a federal majority, the first we’ve had since 2019. This shift fundamentally alters the landscape of the House of Commons. Here is an analysis of what this new majority means for Canadian governance, the opposition, and the City of Brampton.
The Mechanics of a Majority
A majority government streamlines the legislative process in three primary ways:
1. Legislative Efficiency
The horse-trading is over. The government no longer needs to court opposition MPs to pass budgets or survive confidence motions. The deal signed by Prime Minister Trudeau and Jagmeet Singh, dubbed the “supply-and-confidence agreement”—an arrangement that ultimately served as a death knell for former NDP leader Jagmeet Singh—was their way to effectively have a majority government without explicit floor crossers. The agreement stated that on matters of confidence, the NDP would vote in favour of the Liberals in the legislature in exchange for progress on Pharmacare, Dentalcare, Childcare, among other priorities.
Minority governments typically secure confidence in informal ways. In passing the 2025 Budget, Elizabeth May of the Green Party and members of the NDP caucus secured confidence by passing the budget along with the Liberals. Even still, the budget narrowly passed with 170-168 votes in favour. The Liberals now command 174 seats, however, and given Canada’s rigid culture of party discipline, the Prime Minister can rely on his caucus to vote in lockstep, rendering opposition support superfluous.
2. Control Over Committees
Committees are essential to passing bills; it is where they are scrutinized and amended, and where opposition thrives. In a minority government, these committees reflect the House’s composition, allowing the opposition to delay or derail government priorities. With a majority government, the Liberals can now command a majority of committee membership. The legislature will have to amend the Standing Orders to change Committee composition (as the majority was secured mid-session), but the government now possesses the votes to push that procedural change through.
3. “Guillotine” Motions
Time allocation (or “closure”) is a procedural tool used to abruptly end debate and force a vote. While technically available to a minority government, it is rarely successful because it requires opposition MPs to consent to end debate. In a majority context, these “guillotine” motions become an alluring, albeit controversial, instrument to bypass filibusters and accelerate the Liberal agenda.
The Impact on Opposition Parties
- The Conservatives: For Pierre Poilievre, this is a double-edged sword. Facing dipping poll numbers and a caucus siphoned by floor-crossings, a majority government provides him with the “breathing room” to retool. However, idle hands are the devil’s playthings; if Pollievre squanders this time, the looming threat of caucus revolt or popular repudiation awaits him.
- The NDP: Under brand new leader Avi Lewis, the NDP gains much-needed time to find their leader a seat in the House. Additionally, as some Conservatives cross the floor—most notably the historically unscrupulous Marilyn Gladu—the NDP is poised to be the only true progressive alternative to a Liberal government with Conservative vignettes.
Democracy and the “Carney Government”
Is a majority cobbled together through by-elections and floor-crossings bad for democracy? In a Westminster system, floor-crossing is a feature, not a bug. I’ve shared my thoughts in a recent podcast, but far more troubling is the contrast in accountability between Canada and Ontario. While critics decry federal “backroom deals,” there is a curious silence regarding how the Ford government is brazenly pulling taught the short rope given to him after last year’s surprise election. The province is quickly altering democratic norms—amending Freedom of Information rules, granting “Strong Mayor” powers to unelected, provincially appointed chairs, and making massive changes to school boards resulting in more unelected decisionmakers.
Ultimately, it is not how a majority government is obtained that matters, but how it is exercised. We will be watching the Carney government closely.
What This Means for Brampton
With this drama of a majority Parliament resolved (for now), Brampton expects decisive execution on campaign promises. While we celebrate the funding for the Embleton Community Centre, other files remain stalled:
- The Tunneled LRT: The federal government claims it is waiting on Metrolinx for final costing. If the province is moving too slowly, the feds must use their newfound leverage to keep the project on track.
- Housing & Infrastructure: We need a “supercharged” Build Canada Homes program, lest we repeat the disaster of the Canada Infrastructure Bank.
- GO Transit: We seek federal intervention to protect a GO network that is currently being descoped and deprioritized.
The Brampton Board of Trade will soon submit a federal pre-budget submission to ensure these local priorities remain at the forefront of this new majority mandate.