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Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon says the Liberals have heard from some Conservative MPs who are frustrated with Pierre Poilievre’s leadership.Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press
Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon says there are other Conservative MPs who are frustrated with Pierre Poilievre’s leadership, beyond the two who have already crossed the floor to the Liberals.
Mr. MacKinnon, who also serves as the Minister of Transport, made the comments Friday morning after the surprise announcement the night before that Ontario MP Michael Ma was leaving the Conservatives to join the Liberals.
The minister did not name other Conservative MPs.
After announcing his decision via a statement Thursday, Mr. Ma appeared onstage that evening with Prime Minister Mark Carney at the Liberal Party’s holiday party.
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Mr. Ma’s announcement means the Liberals now have 171 out of 343 seats. A party needs 172 to form a majority government.
Mr. MacKinnon said that Liberals have heard from some Conservative MPs who are frustrated with Mr. Poilievre’s “small games and obstruction” amid a trade war with the U.S. that requires serious solutions.
“Some of them – smart people, upstanding people – are going to make it known that they are dissatisfied,” Mr. MacKinnon said. “You’ve seen two to date. There are others, that is for sure.”
The minister made the comments at an unrelated announcement about the proposed Quebec City–Toronto high-speed rail line.
When asked if the Liberals would be able to convince more Conservatives to join them and have a majority by the time the House of Commons returns in late January, Mr. MacKinnon declined to speculate. He said the decision to cross the floor is intensely personal, complex and sometimes disruptive.
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Prime Minister Mark Carney embraces Ontario MP Michael Ma, who crossed the floor to the Liberals, at the Liberal caucus holiday party in Ottawa on Thursday.Justin Tang/The Canadian Press
Responding to Mr. MacKinnon’s comments Friday, Conservative spokesperson Sam Lilly said Mr. Carney’s contempt for Canadians who elected a minority government is clear.
“Instead of working in cooperation as voters demanded, Mark Carney rejected all budget suggestions from other parties. They shut down committees. They obstructed their own agenda and even blocked their own bail legislation,” Mr. Lilly said in a statement.
“Mark Carney is running a government like a shady backroom deal-maker rather than a principled leader.”
Mr. Carney appeared to jokingly hint at more developments while onstage Thursday evening at the Liberal holiday party.
“We welcomed over 300,000 – and one – new Liberals,” he said. As some in the crowd laughed, he added: “The year’s not over. The year’s not over. That’s all I’m saying.”
Mr. Ma, who represents Markham-Unionville, is the second MP to cross the floor in recent weeks. Nova Scotia MP Chris d’Entremont joined the Liberals in November, citing Mr. Poilievre’s leadership style.
The defections are taking place weeks before Mr. Poilievre faces a leadership review in January.
Mr. Ma was elected for the first time in April with 50.7 per cent of the vote. In announcing his new affiliation Thursday, he said Mr. Carney is offering a steady, practical approach to deliver on the priorities he hears in his riding.
Michael Ma was elected as a Conservative by the constituents of Markham-Unionville to fight against Liberal inflationary spending driving up the cost of living in his community.
Today, he chose to endorse the very policies he was elected to oppose. The same policies driving up…
— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) December 12, 2025
Mr. Poilievre responded to Mr. Ma’s departure with a statement on X Thursday.
“Today, he chose to endorse the very policies he was elected to oppose. The same policies driving up food prices and making life more expensive for all. The people he let down the most are the ones who elected him to fight for an affordable future. He will have to answer to them,” he said.
Several Conservative MPs questioned why Mr. Ma would attend the Conservative Christmas party the night before, including smiling for a photo with Mr. Poilievre.
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Dimitri Soudas, who served as a communications director for former prime minister Stephen Harper and has been critical of Mr. Poilievre’s leadership, said the developments involving Mr. Ma do not bode well for the Conservative leader.
“What it means is he can’t hold onto his caucus members,” Mr. Soudas said in an interview on Friday.
He said he found it interesting that a first-term MP would decide that his chances of re-election would be stronger under the Liberal banner.
Mr. Soudas also cited the case of Aaron Gunn, a new MP from British Columbia elected in the April federal election, who said this week he is considering a run for the leadership of the provincial conservatives in B.C.
“If Mr. Gunn believed that Conservatives were on their way to a victory federally, and that he would have a fair chance of being a cabinet minister, why would he be sitting on the fence to lead the B.C. Conservatives without the certainty of winning that leadership race?”
In a recent social-media post, Mr. Gunn declared his interest in a possible move to seek the provincial role but has not commented on the leadership of the Conservative Party.
With reports from Stephanie Levitz and Bill Curry
