Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty says he’s 50-50 that the prime minister’s budget delay will lead to a snap spring election.
The NDP representative said initially he was convinced Stephen Harper would follow his own election law and go to the polls on Oct. 19 as legislated in the House of Commons.
Now he’s not so certain.
“There are some other things happening, aside from the fall in the price of oil,” said Rafferty, whose NDP leaders have blasted the Conservatives for pushing the budget to April, saying Harper is hoping for a miraculous jump in the commodity’s price to help balance the books.
Rafferty on Tuesday said the prime minister might also be trying to redirect the narrative away from some potentially damaging storylines.
“We have (Mike) Duffy coming forward with his trial. We have Dean del Mastro who is appealing his conviction and some of those sorts of scandals that are coming up in the spring.
Del Mastro was convicted of breaking election laws and resigned his seat, while the suspended Conservative senator Duffy faces 31 counts of misspending public funds, a deed forever tied to Harper’s office after the PM’s former chief of staff wrote Duffy an $90,000 cheque to repay the expenses in question.
Rafferty said the possibility remains that Harper doesn’t present a budget at all and simply calls an election.
“The other is he brings it down, passes it immediately, because he can, because it’s a majority government and we have an election in June sometime,” Rafferty said.
The city’s other MP says he’s not surprised Harper is pushing the budget back a month or two beyond its traditional release date.
Still Bruce Hyer (Green Party, Thunder Bay-Superior North) called the move worrisome.
“Mr. Harper has put all of his eggs in one basket – or all of his oil in a bunch of barrels – and he has painted himself into this corner,” said Hyer, accusing Harper of really working for the so-called one percent and big oil.
“Those chickens are coming home to roost. I’m not surprised in the slightest. I also won’t be surprised in the slightest if he does find an excuse to violate his own Election Act that he passed and holds an early election, perhaps as early as March.”
Last week the NDP released its budget wish list, including $15-a-day daycare and the first steps toward a national, $15-an-hour minimum wage.
