NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh hammers home cost of living plan during stop in St. John's

The leader of the federal NDP is touting his plan to tackle the cost of living crisis — while also making it clear he wants to reclaim a Newfoundland and Labrador seat formerly held by his party.

Jagmeet Singh was in St. John's on Monday for a quick visit to speak at a convention held by the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour.

The NDP has pledged it will cut GST on essential items to make life more affordable for Canadians if elected in the next federal election. The party is also targetting cuts to GST on cellphone bills, groceries, children's clothing and more.

In August, Statistics Canada reported that 45 per cent of Canadians say rising prices are greatly affecting their ability to meet day-to-day expenses.

"These are ways to give people some relief right now and we know that when you're feeling really squeezed, every little bit helps," Singh told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show Monday morning.

To make up for the loss in those tax dollars, Singh says he would bring in an excess profit tax — a tax put on business profits or incomes that hit above a certain rate of profit.

Singh said he also has a plan to make food and housing more affordable, including putting a price cap on food essentials — something he said France adopted, which helped reduce the cost of 5,000 food items.

"In fact, the Liberals and Conservatives teamed up to vote against it because they'd rather protect the profits of these very profitable corporate grocery stores," he said. "We think it's time that we bring in this measure to give people relief."

He said an NDP government would ban big corporations from buying up affordable homes, adding that more than 20 per cent of housing in Canada is owned by a large corporate landlord.

"This is a way to sustainably figure out a solution to make housing about people, not about big corporate landlords making more money," Singh said.

Eyeing St. John's East

In September, Singh announced he was terminating the supply-and-confidence agreement his party made with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government, increasing the likelihood of a federal election sooner than later.

However, Singh said, he doesn't know if an election will be called before October 2025, but when it is called the NDP will be ready.

He said there are a lot of great candidates who want to run as NDP candidates, like former labour leader and advocate Mary Shortall who, he said, will run in the district of St. John's East.

"I think it's an opportunity to elect someone that could be a voice for working people from Newfoundland and Labrador," said Singh.

In 2021, Liberal candidate Joanne Thompson flipped the St. John's East seat. It was formerly held by the NDP's Jack Harris.

In the last 20 years, the seat — though under a different name — has been held by the Conservatives, Liberals and the NDP at different times.

Former PC leader David Brazil is also vying to take that seat as a federal Conservative candidate in the next election.

Shortall is the former president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Labour, and last October she was elected as president of the federal New Democratic Party.

"She's someone who understands working people, has fought for working people, and I think it's an opportunity that whenever this election comes, that you can have a voice that's going to stand up and fight for you," said Singh.

In the meantime, he said, his party will be in Parliament pushing for the GST to be removed from essential items as well as the dental program to be expanded to include people who make less than $90,000 a year.

"We're going to keep on pushing for those things and we'll look at each vote, vote by vote."

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