NDP admits to ‘dirty trick’ in turncoat MP’s riding

It appears the NDP have taken a page from the Tory handbook.

About a month ago, the Conservative party was caught making misleading telephone calls to constituents in Liberal MP Irwin Cotler's riding.

Despite railing against the Conservatives for that incident, it's been revealed that the NDP have been up to their own dirty tricks.

According to a story at iPolitics.ca, the NDP was behind an odd robocall campaign that "deluged Quebec MP Lise St-Denis' offices last week with phone calls from constituents upset with her jump from the NDP to the Liberals."

The robocall asked constituents to press "1" if they disagreed with St-Denis' decision to cross the floor. Those that pressed "1" were automatically transferred to one of St-Denis' offices.

NDP Spokeswoman Sally Housser said that 1,000 constituents were transferred with that robocall.

"We have no intention of abandoning the people in the riding who voted for the NDP and we plan to keep them informed and not abandon them," Housser told iPolitics.

"Even though Ms. St-Denis and the Liberal Party really have no respect for their democratic rights."

Housser's revelation came only a day after the NDP's Quebec caucus chair Guy Caron categorically denied that the NDP had anything to do with phone campaign in St-Denis' riding.

"This is not our way of doing things so I would be extremely surprised if it came from us," Caron told iPolitics.

For her part, St-Denis says she doesn't believe there is a wave of popular anger over her decision to leave the NDP, saying the outcry only reflects an organized campaign by her former colleagues.

"I understand that the NDP is angry and encouraged people to act in that way," she said in a radio interview according to the Globe and Mail.

"I don't think that the level of disapproval is as high as it would seem to be."