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OTTAWA — The New Democratic Party should drop the word “new,” says former MP Peter Stoffer.

The 18-year veteran politician, who lost his East Coast riding last week, suggests the New Democrats should consider becoming the Democratic Party.

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“It is a simple change, it’s superficial … but if you just call yourselves the Democrats … people can digest that very easily,” he said.

Stoffer, who was among those who pushed for structural party reform in 2001, also favours separating the federal and provincial wings of the NDP.

“If you join, for example, the Ontario NDP, you’re an automatic member of the federal NDP,” he said. “That has to change.

“We need to break that sort of string that ties us both together … We’re the only party that does that. I’ve been asking for many, many years now to change it and I think it’s time we did that.”

He also said the party should abandon the 1961 agreement that brought the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation and the Canadian Labour Congress together to form the NDP.