Following Sarnia—Lambton—Bkejwanong MP Marilyn Gladu crossing the floor to the Liberals earlier this week, Skeena—Bulkley Valley MP Ellis Ross said he will not do the same.
Gladu became the fourth Conservative and fifth MP to join the Liberal party since the election, joining former Conservatives Matt Jeneroux of Edmonton Riverbend, Michael Ma of Markham—Unionville and Chris d’Entremont of Acadie—Annapolis, as well as New Democrat Lori Idlout of Nunavut.
Amid speculation circulating online that 10 other Conservative MPs may be interested in crossing the floor, Skeena—Bulkley Valley residents voiced concerns to Ross, who said floor crossing is not under consideration.
“Thank you for all your emails and the general inquires about whether or not I will or should cross the floor. I’ve read all the reasons and the rationales, but the bottom line is no.”
Ross added he chose to run as a Conservative because his values align with the party and he will not abandon them.
“I really try to live by principled decisions. Not what’s best for me, but what’s best for the people I represent. That was the same for being an MLA. That was same as being a chief councillor of Haisla. It was the same as being a councilor for Haisla. It was always about what is best for the riding. But on top of that, I chose the Conservatives for a reason. The principles I believe in, in no particular order, are law and order, truth and justice. If you hurt somebody, you got to pay the price. I don’t care who you are. You’ve got to pay the price.”
Calls for Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to step down came after four of his party’s members joined the Liberals. However, Ross said he has confidence in Poilievre and cited several qualities that make him a strong leader.
“If you don’t know, Pierre, if you ever meet him you’ll be impressed. He’ll do very little talking. He wants to know what you think. And that’s what impressed me about him. That’s what I think a true leader is. And he won’t water it down for you, he’ll tell you the truth. And I respect that, especially from a politician.”
