OTTAWA - A new agreement between the federal Liberal government and New Democrats has something important to offer the next Conservative leader: Time.
The deal, set to last until 2025, sees the NDP pledge not to vote to bring down the minority Liberal government, in exchange for working together on shared priorities.
With the Conservatives set to pick their new leader Sept. 10, the party would have more than two years to prepare to face Canadians in a general election, assuming the Liberal-NDP deal holds.
That is longer than former leader Erin O'Toole had when he was elected to the party's top job.
He was chosen in August 2020 and on the campaign trail one year later.
Conservative campaign strategist Michael Diamond says if the Liberal-NDP deal lasts until 2025, it provides an easier path to victory for the next Conservative leader.
He says the extra time also likely means candidates running without a seat in the House of Commons, like former Quebec premier Jean Charest and Brampton, Ont., Mayor Patrick Brown, have one less thing to worry about.
Shakir Chambers, who helped Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives win Ontario's 2018 election, says the substance of the Liberal-NDP deal does, however, provide a challenge for the next Conservative leader when it comes to making promises of restrained spending.
He says the agreement inks in structural spending, like long-term funding for child-care deals, which will be hard to walk back.
"Nobody wants you to take away those goodies," he said.
