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Got your popcorn out, ladies and gentlemen? The Liberals, with a lame duck leader who just set records for lowest votes for his party, are threatening to bring the government down 1 month into its existence. :swoons:
Angry opposition parties holding coalition talks
OTTAWA — Incensed opposition parties are threatening to topple Stephen Harper's Conservative minority and have begun informally exploring the idea of cobbling together a governing coalition.
The Liberals are taking the prospect so seriously that some MPs are privately discussing ways to dump Leader Stéphane Dion without waiting for their party's scheduled May 2 leadership vote.
Sources say NDP Leader Jack Layton has cancelled a trip Friday to Vancouver to take part in the opposition talks, which went on through much of Thursday.
The machinations followed the release of the fall fiscal update.
The Liberals, NDP and Bloc Québécois said they can't support the plan because it offers no stimulus package to deal with the economic crisis.
It also contains a poison pill – a vow to scrap public subsidies for political parties that would financially cripple every party except the Tories.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty insisted the party financing changes are part of the fiscal framework and will be considered a matter of confidence in the Commons. He said an accompanying bill will be put to a vote Monday.
That set off another round of political chicken a scant five weeks after the Oct. 14 election returned Prime Minister Stephen Harper to power with a strengthened minority.
“Instead of an immediate stimulus package to attack the recession, this government is apparently going to attack democracy,” said NDP Leader Jack Layton.
“Why doesn't he stand up for Canadians and take some action on their part instead of protecting his friends in the Conservative party?”
Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe said the update ignores all the party's suggestions for concrete measures to stimulate the economy.
“This statement clearly goes against the interests of Quebec and we will oppose it.”
The Tories could be counting on the Liberals to back down to avoid forcing another election, as the official Opposition did repeatedly in the last Parliament.
But Liberal MPs say the tables have turned with the Harper government pushing too far, too hard.
“Talk about the hunter becoming the hunted,” said Liberal MP Dan McTeague. “They're either very stupid or very arrogant in thinking we'd simply just buckle. We don't have many more cheeks to turn here.”
The Liberals are in the midst of a leadership contest to choose a successor to Mr. Dion which is set to culminate May 2 in Vancouver.
But Mr. Dion and his would-be successors were giving no ground Thursday.
“We cannot support the plan the finance minister presented today. It's a plan to hide the deficit, it's not a plan to get our economy back on track,” said Mr. Dion.
If the government wants to avoid an election, Liberals said Mr. Harper has until Monday to reconsider his economic agenda.
“It's up to him to look at his options,” said Mr. Dion.
“We're asking the prime minister to reconsider it because obviously Canadians don't want an election.”
Liberal MP Michael Ignatieff, the presumed front runner in the race to succeed Mr. Dion, and his main rival, Bob Rae, refused to speculate about the impact a defeat of the government might have on their leadership aspirations. But both used uncompromising language to denounce the fiscal update.
“One step at a time. But I will tell you that I've got ice-water in my veins on this one,” Mr. Ignatieff said in an interview.
“I'm utterly unintimidated and undeterred by this stuff and the caucus is in the same mood . . . . [Harper] has misread the mood if he thinks that the Liberal caucus is going to cave on this matter. No way. No way.”
Similarly, Mr. Rae said the Tories are “deliberately creating a political crisis in order to avoid dealing with an economic crisis.” He said there's “no public policy benefit at all” to the move to scrap public subsidies for parties.
“It's just absolute bloody-minded meanness that's motivating them and it can't be allowed to stand.”
Should the country be propelled into an election, Mr. Dion is still legally the Liberal leader until his successor is elected. However, few Liberal MPs are likely to want to fight another election under Mr. Dion and could put pressure on him to resign immediately.
Moreover, both the Bloc and NDP have signalled that they wouldn't take part in a coalition if it meant installing Mr. Dion as prime minister.
Hence, Liberal MPs have begun privately exploring whether there is some way to speed up Mr. Dion's departure.
Some MPs said former prime minister Jean Chrétien had been approached for advice on how to massage Mr. Dion's early exit. But sources close to Mr. Chrétien said he has not been contacted and is in no way involved.
Senior strategists with both the Rae and Igatieff camps also said that their teams are not involved in trying to accelerate the leadership contest, although they conceded that some MPs may be indulging in “idle speculation” on the matter.
Under the Liberal constitution, the party's national executive, in consultation with caucus, has emergency power to appoint an interim successor should the leader resign or die.
Mr. Ignatieff, who has the lion's share of caucus and executive support, would likely become leader if that route were followed during an election.
New Democrat MP Tom Mulcair hinted that the country need not necessarily hold an election should the Conservative government fall. He told reporters there are other steps that could be taken constitutionally.
Among other options, the opposition parties could try to form a coalition government or reach agreement to give the Liberals, who came second in the Oct. 14 election, a chance to govern.
A Liberal source said the opposition leaders met separately with one another throughout the day Thursday but no decision was reached.
“Nothing happened on our side,” said the Liberal.
As far as Liberals are concerned, the Bloc would have no official role in any coalition with the NDP, “beyond making sure the other two parties play nice together.”
Conservative MPs seemed thunderstruck late Thursday by the possibility that their second term might be coming to an abrupt end.
Piling onto a parliamentary shuttle bus, they were heard incredulously asking opposition MPs if they're serious about forming a coalition.
Traditionally, the governor general is bound to take the advice of a prime minister to call an election when a government is defeated. But historian Michael Behiels said Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean wouldn't have much choice but to give a coalition a chance given that the last election was just over a month ago.
However, Mr. Behiels predicted that a coalition “wouldn't last more than a month” and the country would be plunged into another election anyway. And he said that's exactly what Mr. Harper wants.
“I think this has been engineered. Harper wants his majority so bad before we're into the depths of a recession.”
OTTAWA — Incensed opposition parties are threatening to topple Stephen Harper's Conservative minority and have begun informally exploring the idea of cobbling together a governing coalition.
The Liberals are taking the prospect so seriously that some MPs are privately discussing ways to dump Leader Stéphane Dion without waiting for their party's scheduled May 2 leadership vote.
Sources say NDP Leader Jack Layton has cancelled a trip Friday to Vancouver to take part in the opposition talks, which went on through much of Thursday.
The machinations followed the release of the fall fiscal update.
The Liberals, NDP and Bloc Québécois said they can't support the plan because it offers no stimulus package to deal with the economic crisis.
It also contains a poison pill – a vow to scrap public subsidies for political parties that would financially cripple every party except the Tories.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty insisted the party financing changes are part of the fiscal framework and will be considered a matter of confidence in the Commons. He said an accompanying bill will be put to a vote Monday.
That set off another round of political chicken a scant five weeks after the Oct. 14 election returned Prime Minister Stephen Harper to power with a strengthened minority.
“Instead of an immediate stimulus package to attack the recession, this government is apparently going to attack democracy,” said NDP Leader Jack Layton.
“Why doesn't he stand up for Canadians and take some action on their part instead of protecting his friends in the Conservative party?”
Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe said the update ignores all the party's suggestions for concrete measures to stimulate the economy.
“This statement clearly goes against the interests of Quebec and we will oppose it.”
The Tories could be counting on the Liberals to back down to avoid forcing another election, as the official Opposition did repeatedly in the last Parliament.
But Liberal MPs say the tables have turned with the Harper government pushing too far, too hard.
“Talk about the hunter becoming the hunted,” said Liberal MP Dan McTeague. “They're either very stupid or very arrogant in thinking we'd simply just buckle. We don't have many more cheeks to turn here.”
The Liberals are in the midst of a leadership contest to choose a successor to Mr. Dion which is set to culminate May 2 in Vancouver.
But Mr. Dion and his would-be successors were giving no ground Thursday.
“We cannot support the plan the finance minister presented today. It's a plan to hide the deficit, it's not a plan to get our economy back on track,” said Mr. Dion.
If the government wants to avoid an election, Liberals said Mr. Harper has until Monday to reconsider his economic agenda.
“It's up to him to look at his options,” said Mr. Dion.
“We're asking the prime minister to reconsider it because obviously Canadians don't want an election.”
Liberal MP Michael Ignatieff, the presumed front runner in the race to succeed Mr. Dion, and his main rival, Bob Rae, refused to speculate about the impact a defeat of the government might have on their leadership aspirations. But both used uncompromising language to denounce the fiscal update.
“One step at a time. But I will tell you that I've got ice-water in my veins on this one,” Mr. Ignatieff said in an interview.
“I'm utterly unintimidated and undeterred by this stuff and the caucus is in the same mood . . . . [Harper] has misread the mood if he thinks that the Liberal caucus is going to cave on this matter. No way. No way.”
Similarly, Mr. Rae said the Tories are “deliberately creating a political crisis in order to avoid dealing with an economic crisis.” He said there's “no public policy benefit at all” to the move to scrap public subsidies for parties.
“It's just absolute bloody-minded meanness that's motivating them and it can't be allowed to stand.”
Should the country be propelled into an election, Mr. Dion is still legally the Liberal leader until his successor is elected. However, few Liberal MPs are likely to want to fight another election under Mr. Dion and could put pressure on him to resign immediately.
Moreover, both the Bloc and NDP have signalled that they wouldn't take part in a coalition if it meant installing Mr. Dion as prime minister.
Hence, Liberal MPs have begun privately exploring whether there is some way to speed up Mr. Dion's departure.
Some MPs said former prime minister Jean Chrétien had been approached for advice on how to massage Mr. Dion's early exit. But sources close to Mr. Chrétien said he has not been contacted and is in no way involved.
Senior strategists with both the Rae and Igatieff camps also said that their teams are not involved in trying to accelerate the leadership contest, although they conceded that some MPs may be indulging in “idle speculation” on the matter.
Under the Liberal constitution, the party's national executive, in consultation with caucus, has emergency power to appoint an interim successor should the leader resign or die.
Mr. Ignatieff, who has the lion's share of caucus and executive support, would likely become leader if that route were followed during an election.
New Democrat MP Tom Mulcair hinted that the country need not necessarily hold an election should the Conservative government fall. He told reporters there are other steps that could be taken constitutionally.
Among other options, the opposition parties could try to form a coalition government or reach agreement to give the Liberals, who came second in the Oct. 14 election, a chance to govern.
A Liberal source said the opposition leaders met separately with one another throughout the day Thursday but no decision was reached.
“Nothing happened on our side,” said the Liberal.
As far as Liberals are concerned, the Bloc would have no official role in any coalition with the NDP, “beyond making sure the other two parties play nice together.”
Conservative MPs seemed thunderstruck late Thursday by the possibility that their second term might be coming to an abrupt end.
Piling onto a parliamentary shuttle bus, they were heard incredulously asking opposition MPs if they're serious about forming a coalition.
Traditionally, the governor general is bound to take the advice of a prime minister to call an election when a government is defeated. But historian Michael Behiels said Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean wouldn't have much choice but to give a coalition a chance given that the last election was just over a month ago.
However, Mr. Behiels predicted that a coalition “wouldn't last more than a month” and the country would be plunged into another election anyway. And he said that's exactly what Mr. Harper wants.
“I think this has been engineered. Harper wants his majority so bad before we're into the depths of a recession.”
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