Floor crossings have been front of mind in federal politics, and Kootenay-Columbia MP Rob Morrison would like to see byelections required when MPs cross the floor.
So far, four sitting MPs have crossed the aisle to join the Liberals since Prime Minister Mark Carney was elected.
That includes three Conservative MPs and one from the NDP.
Morrison said voters often feel cheated when floor crossings happen and should have a say through a byelection.
“I think when somebody wants to cross a floor, there should be a by-election, because if you voted for a liberal or a Conservative or an NDP, and that person goes to another party, really, you would have said, I wouldn’t have actually voted for you if you’re with that party,” he said.
“If you want to cross the floor, no problem, you resign as a member of this party and we’ll have a by-election and you can run for the new party that you want to be.”
Because of these recent floor crossings, the Liberals are two seats short of a majority government.
However, that is expected to change next month.
Three byelections are set to take place, including two in Liberal strongholds.
Morrison said as the Opposition, the Conservatives will need to take a long-term approach.
“I think now with the majority government, it’s a lot more of a long term issue, just our role as opposition to hold a government accountable,” he said.
“Whether it’s a majority or a minority, we still were there to say, okay, where did this $500 million go? That’s our job.”
He said they have to be prepared not to expect a snap election.
“We’ll just grin and bear and probably not too much grinning.”
The byelections are scheduled for April 13.
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