Source : CNews

OTTAWA (CP) - There was no disguising Jack Layton's glee Thursday as the NDP leader used his flirtation with left-wing Liberal stalwart Sheila Copps to tweak Prime Minister Paul Martin as too conservative for much of his own party.

"You have somebody more conservative than (Tory) Brian Mulroney leading the Liberal party, (it) shouldn't even be allowed to be called the Liberal party any more," said Layton, his eyes sparkling in anticipation of a fight.

By comparing Martin to Mulroney - one of the least popular prime ministers in recent memory - Layton waved a red flag at the prime minister's inner circle while issuing an "open invitation" to Liberals, left-leaning Conservatives and Bloc Quebecois supporters.

The NDP, he said, welcomes "people who believe that Paul Martin's conservative choices are taking the Liberal party and Canada in the wrong direction. . .It's a corporate drift away from Canadian values."

Copps, a former Liberal cabinet minister and two-time federal leadership contender, spoke Wednesday with Layton and later refused to rule out the possibility of switching to the New Democrats.

She's been embroiled in a bitter fight for the Liberal nomination in her Hamilton riding and is angry that Martin has refused to support her.

"I want to leave all my options open," Copps said Thursday.

"I never thought that I'd say this. . .but if my party can't run a fair and open process, then I will look at other options."

If Copps defects, it would give Layton's claims of a right-wing drift in politics new credibility, suggested one observer.

"It would be a huge coup to Layton and the NDP if they got her," said Nelson Wiseman, a political scientist at the University of Toronto.

In his view, Copps's practical experience in government would give the NDP, seen by some as a home for flakes, a little extra credibility.

"All this makes the Liberals look less left. . .and it adds a centrist component to the NDP," said Wiseman. "They're raided a player from another team, and a player that has incredible profile."

A spokesman for the federal Liberal party said Martin remains committed to "having a great, centrist coalition."

"The progressive component of that coalition is very much alive and well in the Liberal party, and we have no intention of abandoning that tradition or those fundamentals," Steven MacKinnon said in an interview.

Copps has not committed to the NDP, and some believe she may simply be out for revenge in the fierce fight for the Liberal nomination in the new riding of Hamilton East-Stoney Creek,

Transport Minister Tony Valeri, a Martin supporter, is challenging Copps in the riding created under redistribution. It combines a chunk of his old riding with Copps's former constituency of Hamilton East.

After Martin refused to intervene and tell Valeri to back off, Layton said he called Copps to commiserate.

"I just thought it was disgusting. . .that's she's being pushed out."

Layton confirmed he has also spoken with veteran Toronto Liberal MP Charles Caccia, a Copps supporter who is also facing a challenge for the Liberal nomination in his riding.

The NDP leader said he has chatted with others but hasn't tried to directly woo any other angry Liberals.

Several former MPs and cabinet ministers have clashed with Martin's inner circle, but none except Copps have mused about jumping to the NDP.

Allan Rock, a former leadership rival, is leaving the country, having accepted a posting to the United Nations as Martin's ambassador.

Herb Dhaliwal, the former natural resources minister, claims Martin supporters in British Columbia hijacked his riding association, but he has decided to quit politics.

Layton brushed off suggestions that by trying to woo Liberals and red Tories, he risks undermining the NDP's base.

"We're very clear on our values, we have a bit of a reputation for sticking to them."

But even Quebec sovereigntists would be welcome in a new coalition, he added.

Copps ran a distant second to Martin in last fall's Liberal leadership contest. Martin later offered the former heritage minister a patronage appointment, which she refused. Martin did not put her in his cabinet.

MacKinnon dismissed Copps's concerns about a fair fight for the nomination in her riding, maintaining that "the same rules that apply to her apply to every other candidate for a Liberal nomination."

© CNews