Former Conservative MP Michael Ma is speaking out about his decision to cross the floor to the Liberal Party, saying he hadn’t made up his mind about the decision just the night before.
Ma was photographed with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre at the Tories’ Christmas party the night before he crossed the floor to join the Liberal caucus, putting the party within one seat of a majority.
“The night I attended the Conservative (Christmas) party, I was truly a Conservative member, and really an MP,” Ma told CP24 Breakfast in a sit-down interview Thursday. “I had not made a decision at that point.”
Ma’s sudden crossing without warning raised eyebrows. Just weeks ago he referred to the Liberals as “team feudalism” in his criticism of their budget in Parliament and said “the Liberals do not believe in a productive economy that works for hard-working Canadians.”
Speaking with CP24 Thursday, he said he realized Prime Minister Mark Carney’s “pragmatic and also centrist approach really aligns with mine.”
He said he only made the decision after meeting with the prime minister on the day it was announced.
“It wasn’t until I had the opportunity to confirm my understanding of Prime Minister Carney’s approach and his vision for Canada,” Ma said.
Despite the fact his community voted just months ago to send a Conservative to Ottawa, he felt they would be better served if he were a Liberal, he said.
“I have now better access to ministers and the prime minister to deliver those voices on behalf of Markham-Unionville,” Ma said. “I think this is a better approach than, you know, creating very negative views and not finding solutions.”
He said he’s hearing from the community that they want the country “to be united and to be strong.”
He also said the move returns him to his roots as a centrist.
“When I first joined politics, I was a centrist conservative, Progressive Conservative, and at that point I don’t believe in extreme right nor extreme left. And so my belief is that Canada and Canadians are mostly in the centrist arena for politics,” Ma said.
Some 37,000 people have signed a petition calling for Ma to resign, saying more than 27,000 people voted for him as a Conservative and he never consulted the community before making the move.
“His sudden decision to cross the floor and join the Liberal Party is not simply a personal choice or a routine political maneuver. It is a unilateral act that changes the political alignment, representation, and power balance in Parliament, all without consulting the people who elected him,” the petition reads.
But Ma said he’ll still be advocating for the same beliefs now.
“My principles have not changed,” Ma said. “I’m still believing in fighting crime and growing the economy, and so it’s very important for me to continue to represent them in the best way I believe.”
“My values haven’t changed, and I’m continuing to fight crime and push for well-balanced immigration policies, and obviously for the benefit of infrastructure investment into Markham Unionville.”
Ma’s decision to join the Liberals has put the party one seat away from a majority government and has prompted speculation on Parliament Hill on whether other Conservative MPs could follow suit.
However, in his interview with CP24, Ma said he doesn’t know of any other impending floor crossings.
