Over a thousand grassroots members of the New Democratic Party (NDP) are congregating in Hamilton this weekend. The current policies linked to the ongoing Israeli-Hamas conflict, however, are not anticipated to partake in the deliberations.
Originally, 350 policy proposals had been put forward in the initial stages of convention preparation. They encapsulated diverse topics, such as the reinforcement of public health-care, ameliorating the housing crisis, and the war situation in Ukraine. However, the final list of “prioritized resolutions” was trimmed to a mere 60 by October 4, significantly before the Hamas’s assault on the Israeli Defence Forces and civilians. Notably absent from this catalogue was the “solidarity with Palestine” proposal, forwarded by the NDP’s socialist caucus.
This particular proposal had urged the federal NDP to intensify its advocacy of Palestinian human rights by actively endorsing the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) against Israel. However, this movement has been branded as anti-Semitic by B’nai Brith Canada and other Jewish advocacy organizations.
In an incident drawing considerable attention, NDP Hamilton Centre MPP Sarah Jama had earlier made a public apology for a social media post wherein she had demanded a ceasefire and end to the alleged apartheid of the Palestinian people. Jama, however, had not mentioned the surprise attack by Hamas on Israel that resulted in more than a 1000 casualties, as per Israeli military records. She later asserted her condemnation of such terrorist activities, along with her disapproval of Israeli’s assault on civilians in Gaza.
Looking past this contentious issue, some electoral district associations express their desire for the party to concentrate on pressing the Liberal government into forming a universal pharmacare program. The party’s agreement supporting the Liberal minority government necessitates the passage of a Canada pharmacare act by the end of 2023.
Furthermore, the NDP members from Ottawa-Centre, Edmonton-Strathcona and Oakville-North Burlington advocate for the establishment of a Crowne Corporation for the domestic manufacturing of vaccines, pharmaceuticals, and medical devices. They claim that currently, publicly-funded medical research is being exploited by private companies without any financial reimbursement, dubbing it a “theft of public funds.”
The NDP has declared the housing situation to be in “crisis proportions.” Three housing resolutions are set to be discussed at the convention, from the total of ten affordability policy proposals. These include a plan to create 3.5 million affordable homes over the next decade and policies to curb evictions by “predatory landlords”. Changes to the federal tax code to end tax advantages for real estate investment trusts, as well as a plan to utilize federally owned land for non-speculative and not-for-profit housing, are also on the agenda.
As these issues are examined, votes will be held on Sunday. Given the non-binding nature of such votes, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh and his caucus will have the final discretion in selecting policy proposals for the future NDP platform. The leadership review, as part of the NDP constitution, will also decide whether Singh will continue as a leader.
