Caucus support 'heartwarming' in a cold world, Tom Mulcair says

NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said his caucus has emerged united from a retreat in Montreal that began with questions about whether he should stay at the head of the party until members choose his permanent replacement in October 2017.

"In a world that can be a bit cold, it is veryheartwarming to have the unanimous support of your colleagues," he said at the conclusion of the gathering Thursday.

• Tom Mulcair has 'unanimous' NDP caucus support after leadership questions
• THE HOUSE | Tom Mulcair to keep 'steady hand on the tiller' until next NDP leader is chosen

Prior to the retreat, NDP MPs were asking whatMulcairhad been doing during the summer as party fundraising fell behindandpoll numbers sank during the Liberal government's first-year honeymoon.

"When you go through a week where people are saying all sorts of things supposedly anonymous sourcesyou're sorting of going, OK,what's this about?" Mulcairsaid.

"Then you get into caucus and you get the unanimous support of your colleagues and you can do exactly what you set out to do. I had offered to take on this job in a very tough situation."

Following the disappointing results of the 2015 election, the NDP membership voted for a leadership review of Mulcair in April initiating a leadership contest.

Mulcairsaid he sees himself as a caretaker leader, keeping the NDP's finances and organization in good order for his successor.

Progressive opposition

Thenovelty that contributes to the popularity of Justin Trudeau's government will start fadingsoon, Mulcair said.

The NDP will make sure the Liberals answer for what Mulcair calledthe lack of progress on reducing greenhouse gases, funding for Indigenous education andpay equity in the federal government.

Mulcair looks forward to Question Period on Monday

8 years ago

Duration 1:14

Tom Mulcair wrapped up the party's fall caucus meeting in Montreal Thursday

"We think Mr.Trudeau'sstill got a lot of answers to give to Canadians. They master style, but we're going to be talking a lot about substance as well and that's what caucus has asked me to do."

Mulcair also said the NDP is willingto praise Trudeau for following through on progressive projects such as the summer youth jobs program and the inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

Mulcair had been criticized before the leadership vote in April and even during the 2015 electoral campaign with abandoning the party's socialist roots to appeal to centrist voters.

At the opening of the retreat,Mulcairsaid the core values of the NDP are"environmentalism, pacificism, feminism and socialism."

On Thursday, he said socialism had always been part of theNDP'sidentity, but there are many paths into the party.

• NDP votes to remove 'socialism' from partyconstitution
• Proposed NDP resolutions show grassroots itching to move left

"It doesn't matter what angle you come at your progressive views from," he said."I came into the party largely because of my environmental activism, but I've also always been a strong pacifist. This is part of who I am. So we come at it from different angles, what we're always saying is it's people first and foremost."