CALGARY — NDP leadership candidate Avi Lewis is facing backlash after suggesting that Canada should not be spending 2% of its GDP on defence and should instead be spending it on combating the "climate emergency.""I don’t believe we need to spend 2% of our GDP on military spending, as we need that money for other things, including the climate emergency, which is costing us more money while destroying towns and filling our lungs with smoke," Lewis wrote on X, quoting an interview he did with Keith Porteous. "The idea that we should now move to 5% of GDP is a destructive and nihilistic fantasy, pouring fuel on the climate fire," he continued. .Lewis faced immediate backlash for these comments from seemingly both sides of the political spectrum, as well as from his own party."Why does he keep talking about climate, we are not the green party lite," one comment from an NDP supporter reads."As a lifelong New Democrat, I'm appalled at the idea that we shouldn't spend 2% of our GDP on the military. With issues with the arctic, supporting our allies in Europe and Asia, and the target we have from our southern neighbours, we need to be prepared for anything," another said..Criticism also, unsurprisingly, came from voices outside of NDP circles, with both liberals and conservatives taking potshots at the former journalist and activist."Brutally detached from reality," one response reads. "More and more convinced we are witnessing the end of the federal NDP," wrote another.One comment just reads, "delusional.".Lewis' position on this issue also highlights a major split in the NDP, as a recent EKOS poll shows NDP voters almost split on the issue of whether or not Canada should spend 5% of GDP on defence.The poll shows that 49% of NDP voters support this increase in spending, while 38% oppose it..This increase in defence spending seems to have unanimous support across all other parties, with 79% of Liberals, 75% of Conservatives, and, shockingly, 82% of Bloc Quebecois supporters.The NDP is the only party poll that did not have an overwhelming majority of support for this increase, but the poll still shows more NDP supporters support the increase than oppose it.The issue of defence spending seems to be a divisive issue for the NDP, and with the leadership contest underway, it seems that Lewis is trying to court the more pro-environment/anti-military wing of the party.Lewis is one of five candidates and, along with Edmonton MP Heather McPherson and union boss Rob Ashton, is one of the three frontrunners in the contest, although little to no polling is available for the race.The leadership vote is due to be held this coming March at the party convention in Winnipeg.
