Choice of house leader could be most important move Trudeau makes on Wednesday

Former NDP MP Libby Davies was her party’s house leader for many years, including when Hill held the job. She said Trudeau is going to have to pick someone who can work well with others. “If the house leader is someone who is pretty aggressive, pretty dominant and very partisan it doesn’t bode well for a working relationship,” she said. She said the key for the government is to work with the opposition and respect the nature of a minority parliament. “You have to know the trigger points about what will set off an opposition,” she said. “You’re going to piss people off very quickly and it’s going to create a tense and fractious political environment.” She said opposition parties have to do their part as well, because the public isn’t going to be eager for a snap election, especially if it is not over a substantive issue. “If it looks like people are mucking around, playing games and being highly partisan, I just think the reaction to that is not positive at all.”