‘Never say never’: Green Party leader on future support for Liberal government

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May says the Liberals ‘making the deal with Danielle Smith was more important’ than having Guilbeault remain in cabinet.

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is leaving the door open to support the Liberal government, despite recently calling her vote in favour of the federal budget a “mistake.”

“It certainly seems that way, but I’m a bridge builder, and I never say never,” May said in an interview with CTV Question Period airing Sunday, when asked if Prime Minister Mark Carney has lost her trust following last week’s memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Ottawa and Alberta.

May’s comments come after former environment minister Steven Guilbeault told CTV Power Play on Wednesday that he was one of the people assigned to work with May to get her support on the budget. Guilbeault said May was assured that tax credits for enhanced oil recovery would not be in the budget or added to it afterwards.

While the federal budget says enhanced oil recovery would not be eligible for a federal subsidy, the deal with Alberta commits Canada to extending federal tax credits to encourage large-scale CCUS investments, including the Pathways Alliance project “and enhanced oil recovery to provide the certainty needed to attract large additional sources of domestic and foreign capital.”

“(May) supported us in good faith. I don’t think she will support us moving forward. I think that bridge has been burned,” Guilbeault said.

Speaking to host Vassy Kapelos, May called that move by the Carney government “devastating.”

When asked if anyone in the Prime Minister’s Office reached out to her prior to the MOU unveiling, May said “no” and called it a “calculated choice.”

“They decided that Steven Guilbeault in cabinet was less important than inking a deal that I think got Canada basically nothing,” May said.

Last month, May helped keep the minority Carney government in power by voting to support the federal budget. The government was just two seats shy of a majority and needed opposition support or abstentions to avoid a snap election.

While May says she doesn’t regret how she voted, she says she will not vote for Bill C-15, which is the budget implementation bill that is currently making its way through the House of Commons.

Pressed by Kapelos on whether she has ruled out supporting the Liberals on matters of confidence moving forward, May said the government will “have to change their policies.”

“I can’t vote confidence on the current policies,” May added.

You can watch Green Party Leader Elizabeth May’s full interview on CTV Question Period Sunday at 11 a.m. ET.

With files from The Canadian Press