Wilson-Raybould and Philpott will soon decide whether to join the Greens, May says

Green Party Leader Elizabeth May said today she expects two former Liberal MPs who quit Justin Trudeau's cabinet over the SNC-Lavalin matter will decide whether to join her party by early June.

Jody Wilson-Raybould and Jane Philpottresigned and were subsequentlykicked out of the Liberal caucus in the fallout of the SNC-Lavalin affair, which saw top government officials accused by Wilson-Raybould of pressuring her to interfere in legal proceedings against the Quebec construction company.

Both are now sitting as independent MPs. They have not said yet what their next moves will be.

Wilson-Raybould attended May's wedding in Victoria last month; at the time, according to a Global News report, she said she'd had "several conversations with Elizabeth, no decision has been made yet."

May and NDPLeader Jagmeet Singh have each mused about courting the two former Liberals to run for their parties in October's election.May said herinvitationremains wide open.

"I make no bones about the fact thatI would love that," May told host Chris Hall in an interview on CBCRadio'sThe House.

May said she's talked to both womenbut she's still unsure of her chances of securing them as candidates.

Jane Philpott accuses Trudeau of violating her rights in expelling her, Wilson-Raybould

5 years ago

Duration 3:35

Jane Philpott said in the House of Commons that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau violated her rights and the rights of Jody Wilson-Raybould when he expelled them from Liberal caucus without a full caucus vote. Philpott is asking the Speaker of the House to rule on the matter, and declare that her rights were violated.

"I honestly can't tell you, sitting here right now, whether they would really seriously become Green candidates or not."

Either way, she said, she's expecting answers shortly as the deadline to nominate candidates for October draws closer.

"I would be surprised if they didn't make up their minds before sometime in early June," she said.

CBC News had not heard back from either Wilson-Raybould or Philpott at time of publication.