Liberal Party of Canada moved swiftly to exercise its new majority power in Parliament by passing a motion to restructure House of Commons committees and give the government a majority of seats on those key bodies.
The move came just hours after three newly elected Liberal MPs officially took their seats, formally pushing Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government into majority territory.
Committees play a major role in Ottawa by studying legislation, reviewing government operations, calling witnesses and requesting documents. Since the 2025 election produced a minority Parliament, Liberals had held less than half the seats on committees. Monday’s vote changes that balance.
Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon said the new structure simply restores the traditional model in which majority governments also control committee membership.
Opposition parties sharply criticized the move. Andrew Scheer called it undemocratic and accused the Liberals of using their numbers to shut down debate and consolidate power.
The three new MPs who helped formalize the majority were Doly Begum, Danielle Martin and Tatiana Auguste. Their recent byelection victories increased the Liberal caucus to 174 seats.
The day also brought further changes to the opposition benches. Alexandre Boulerice announced he is leaving the federal New Democratic Party to sit as an Independent before resigning to run provincially for Québec solidaire.
His departure leaves the NDP with only five seats in the House of Commons and no elected seat for party leader Avi Lewis.
The committee vote signals that Carney’s government now has greater ability to move legislation, shape parliamentary studies and manage the political agenda heading into the next session.