A New Democratic government in Ottawa would ensure the Scarborough subway extension is completed as planned, leader Thomas Mulcair said Friday.

Mulcair made the remark at a news conference in Toronto, where he introduced former NDP Saskatchewan finance minister Andrew Thomson as the candidate for Eglinton-Lawrence.

In response to a question from a reporter about whether he would support the Scarborough subway, Mulcair said: “With regard to decisions that have been taken by a previous government, with regard to the extension of the subway out to Scarborough, we’re going to leave that in place.”

The NDP leader said his party is “not going to start talking about reversing decisions that have already been taken. We will make sure that that project continues through as it was done.”

In an interview with the Star last month, Mulcair said an NDP government would increase funding to provinces and municipalities for transit and other infrastructure projects, but wouldn’t choose which projects to build. “We are not going to try and dictate terms. We think that belongs primarily to the provinces and the municipalities together,” he said.

One of Mulcair’s star candidates, former NDP transportation critic Olivia Chow, ran for mayor of Toronto last year on a platform that included scrapping the controversial subway extension.

But in launching her bid to be elected MP in Spadina-Fort York, Chow told the Star that the federal government shouldn’t choose which transit projects to pursue.

“Let the TTC and city council make that decision," she said.

More to come.

With files from David Rider and Joanna Smith.

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