Jagmeet Singh makes case to new Alberta NDP leader amid party separation talks

Breaking up the federal and provincial arms of the New Democratic Party would be a mistake, federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh suggested on Thursday, as members in Alberta increasingly vocalize their desire for a separation.

Singh said the federal and Alberta NDP need to remain united in their goals to bring down conservatives.

“We are united in our goals to take on conservatives, to bring forward a clear vision for a government that works for people,” Singh said in Toronto.

“And the best way we achieve that goal is by being united.”

It’s a message he said he delivered in a conversation this week with Alberta’s new NDP leader, Naheed Nenshi, who took over the helm of the Alberta party from Rachel Notley earlier this week.

But Nenshi intends to ask party members if they want to separate from the federal party, an issue he had campaigned on during the leadership race.

Party constitutions dictate that members of a provincial NDP are automatically members of the federal party. But the link has caused headaches for the Alberta NDP and Nenshi is not backing away from his pledge to address it.

“You know me, I don’t wait on things,” Nenshi said on Monday during his first press conferencing following his win.

“But really the issue on this one for me is simply that the members are really talking about it. I hear it every day and the way I like to lead is that I don’t like things that are bubbling under the surface.”

He plans to bring up the issue with members “as soon as possible” while conceding that it will ultimately be up to members to decide whether or not to divorce, despite his opinion.

“There’s no point in dilly-dallying about it,” Nenshi said. “I promise that I will put in a transparent process for the members to make the decision