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Originally Posted by Wolven
Is it? Is the job of the opposition leader to criticize the governing party?
I get that PP has been an attack dog for decades and does not have another setting, but criticizing the government is not actually the job of the opposition leader.
The job of the opposition leader is to work within the government to provide the best possible outcomes for the people. Sometimes that means being critical of the governing party when they make the wrong decision but sometimes the opposition should support and work with the governing party if they are doing something that is good for the people.
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https://www.ourcommons.ca/procedure/...work-e.html#6a
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The Role of Opposition Parties in Canada
Public debate on proposed legislation, on public policy and on the conduct of the executive is essential to the work of Parliament. Opposition parties lead and focus on the representative and watchdog functions performed by members of Parliament. They work to ensure that legislation is carefully considered, and that differing views on important initiatives are publicly expressed and defended.
By convention, the party with the second-largest number of seats in the House is designated as the official opposition. The leader of that party, if he or she is an elected member of the House, becomes the Leader of the Opposition, and enjoys special procedural considerations, such as unlimited time to participate in certain debates, the right to ask the first question during the daily question period, and being recognized in debate immediately after the minister who speaks first on behalf of the government when government bills or motions are introduced. By law, the Leader of the Opposition must be consulted before certain important decisions and appointments are made by the government.
The leaders of recognized opposition parties usually sit in the front row of the chamber. They are the first members of their parties to be given the floor should they rise to ask a question during question period.
The Standing Orders of the House of Commons provide opportunities for recognized opposition parties to respond to ministers’ statements, to propose motions on allotted or opposition days, and to chair certain standing committees. Opportunities to participate in debate of bills and motions, to make statements and to ask questions during question period are distributed in proportion to the number of members each party has in the House.
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Yes, it quite literally is the job of the opposition leader to criticize any and all decisions done by the governing party. This exists even if the majority party has 342 seats and the opposition has 1. It's the framework of our parliamentary system.
If you see the Poilievre interview he did after the meeting he had with Carney, it's obvious that he likes many things in the budget and had a great rapport with Carney (it should be obvious when you see both together they are quite friendly to each other), but as opposition, they must criticize it by their role. It's quite literally their duty. I would fully expect any opposition to the government to voice issues with a budget or major bill and not just side with them.
That's something some of the more partisan folks on this board consistently fail to understand when the opposition is a party they don't like. Even on unanimous votes and decisions where the opposition agrees with a motion / proposed bill, they must still oppose and voice opposing views in the process. A lot of it is theatre as a result, but that's politics.
Whether people believe he is over the top in how he opposes is another matter entirely.