FORD
03-25-2011, 06:55 PM
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Harper government falls, sending Canadians to the polls
By Andrew Mayeda, Postmedia NewsMarch 25, 2011 6:22 PM
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Stephen Harper will visit the Governor General on Saturday to dissolve Parliament, setting the stage for a federal election in early May.
The Harper government was defeated in the House of Commons on Friday on a non-confidence motion declaring the government in contempt of Parliament.
It is the first time in Canadian history that a government has been found in contempt.
The Liberal motion passed by a vote of 156 to 145, as the opposition parties teamed up to topple the Conservatives.
The campaign for Canada's 41st election is expected to officially begin Saturday morning, when Harper is expected to visit Rideau Hall to ask Gov. Gen. David Johnston to dissolve Parliament. Canadians will be going to the polls for the fourth time in roughly seven years.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was "disappointed" in the vote against his government and argued that Canadians would be too. He scolded the opposition parties for rejecting the government's budget, tabled this week by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.
"There was nothing, absolutely nothing, in the budget that the opposition could not or should not have supported," Harper said in a brief statement in the House of Commons foyer.
"Unfortunately Mr. Ignatieff and his coalition partners in the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois made abundantly clear that they had already decided that they wanted to force an election instead — Canada's fourth election in seven years, an election Canadians had told them clearly that they do not want."
Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff said his party will offer a "compassionate, responsible" alternative to the Conservatives during the campaign.
He invited disillusioned progressive conservatives and Canadians concerned about social justice to "come on into the big red tent, at the centre, the compassionate heart of Canadian politics."
But he was again hounded by questions about whether he would consider forming a coalition with one or both of the other opposition parties if the Liberals don't win the most seats. Ignatieff stuck to his position that he wants to form a Liberal government.
"I am here with this team of proud Canadians to create a Liberal alternative to the Conservative government. Let me make it more clear: If you vote for the NDP, if you vote for the Greens, if you vote for the Bloc, you'll get more of this and Canadians are saying enough," he told reporters.
NDP leader Jack Layton said the New Democrats have a track record of working with other parties.
"I'm running for prime minister, I'm running to lead the largest party in the House of Commons, and then to work with the mandate that Canadians give me, reaching out to other parties as required," he said.
Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe accused the Conservatives of flouting the rules of democracy. "This government also presents a backward, narrow ideology that doesn't represent the values and interests of Quebecers. The Harper government has turned its back on Quebec," he said.
A parliamentary committee recently recommended the government be found in contempt for failing to provide enough information about the costs of its crime legislation.
Speaker Peter Milliken ruled earlier this month that, "on its face," the government appeared to have breached the parliamentary privilege of MPs by refusing to release the information.
The non-confidence motion stated: "That the House agree with the finding of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs that the government is in contempt of Parliament, which is unprecedented in Canadian parliamentary history, and consequently, the House has lost confidence in the government."
The vote will be seen as a formal finding of contempt against the government, because the motion clearly used the word "contempt" and was approved by the Commons, said one constitutional scholar.
"This will go down in the history books as a finding of contempt," said Ned Franks, a professor emeritus at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.
The Conservatives hold 143 of the 308 seats in the Commons. The Liberals hold 77, the Bloc Quebecois, 47, and the NDP, 36.
There are two independent MPs, Helena Guergis and Andre Arthur, and three vacant seats.
Government house leader John Baird accused the opposition of putting their lust for power above the interests of Canadians.
"I'm saddened that a Parliament which has accomplished a lot recently will come to an end because of the reckless actions of the Liberal, Bloc Quebecois and NDP coalition in forcing an unwanted and unnecessary election on Canadians," he said.
Baird noted the opposition parties hold a majority on the committee that recommended the government be found in contempt of Parliament.
"What they aren't telling Canadians is that this was an opposition-stacked committee, who used the tyranny of the majority to get the predetermined outcome they wanted," Baird said. "They were the ones who demonstrated real contempt for Parliament, and they will have to answer to the Canadian people for that."
It is only the sixth time in history the federal government has been defeated on a confidence vote in the House of Commons. Previously, that had only happened to minority governments under Arthur Meighen in 1926, John Diefenbaker in 1963, Pierre Trudeau in 1974, Joe Clark in 1979 and Paul Martin in 2005.
The mood was electric in the packed Commons as MPs prepared to vote early Friday afternoon.
Afterward, a handful of opposition MPs threw up sheets of paper that fell to the green Commons floor like confetti.
Party leaders will fan out across the country on Saturday to begin a campaign expected to end May 2.
Harper is expected to make his first stop in Quebec City. Ignatieff will hold a rally in Ottawa before travelling to Montreal for his first campaign stop. NDP leader Jack Layton will kick off his campaign in Edmonton and Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe will also be in Montreal.
The Conservatives plan to focus on the economy, arguing a change of power would undermine the still-fragile recovery at a time when it faces threats such as Middle East turmoil, fallout from the tsunami in Japan and ongoing debt troubles in Europe.
The opposition parties will put the spotlight on what they describe as the Conservatives' lack of ethics and accountability.
The opposition will point to a string of recent controversies around the Tories, including charges that Conservative officials breached Canada's election law and allegations that a former adviser to the prime minister was lobbying for deals that would have benefited his fiancee, a former escort.
A new poll suggests the Conservatives hold a commanding lead in public support heading into the campaign. The Conservatives command 43-per-cent support among decided voters, putting them well within reach of a majority, according to an Ipsos Reid commissioned by Postmedia News and Global National.
The Liberals registered 24-per-cent support, the NDP are at 16 per cent, the Bloc at 10 per cent, and the Green Party at six per cent.
With files from Mike De Souza, Althia Raj and Tobi Cohen
amayeda@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/amayeda
Harper government falls, sending Canadians to the polls
By Andrew Mayeda, Postmedia NewsMarch 25, 2011 6:22 PM
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Stephen Harper will visit the Governor General on Saturday to dissolve Parliament, setting the stage for a federal election in early May.
The Harper government was defeated in the House of Commons on Friday on a non-confidence motion declaring the government in contempt of Parliament.
It is the first time in Canadian history that a government has been found in contempt.
The Liberal motion passed by a vote of 156 to 145, as the opposition parties teamed up to topple the Conservatives.
The campaign for Canada's 41st election is expected to officially begin Saturday morning, when Harper is expected to visit Rideau Hall to ask Gov. Gen. David Johnston to dissolve Parliament. Canadians will be going to the polls for the fourth time in roughly seven years.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said he was "disappointed" in the vote against his government and argued that Canadians would be too. He scolded the opposition parties for rejecting the government's budget, tabled this week by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty.
"There was nothing, absolutely nothing, in the budget that the opposition could not or should not have supported," Harper said in a brief statement in the House of Commons foyer.
"Unfortunately Mr. Ignatieff and his coalition partners in the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois made abundantly clear that they had already decided that they wanted to force an election instead — Canada's fourth election in seven years, an election Canadians had told them clearly that they do not want."
Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff said his party will offer a "compassionate, responsible" alternative to the Conservatives during the campaign.
He invited disillusioned progressive conservatives and Canadians concerned about social justice to "come on into the big red tent, at the centre, the compassionate heart of Canadian politics."
But he was again hounded by questions about whether he would consider forming a coalition with one or both of the other opposition parties if the Liberals don't win the most seats. Ignatieff stuck to his position that he wants to form a Liberal government.
"I am here with this team of proud Canadians to create a Liberal alternative to the Conservative government. Let me make it more clear: If you vote for the NDP, if you vote for the Greens, if you vote for the Bloc, you'll get more of this and Canadians are saying enough," he told reporters.
NDP leader Jack Layton said the New Democrats have a track record of working with other parties.
"I'm running for prime minister, I'm running to lead the largest party in the House of Commons, and then to work with the mandate that Canadians give me, reaching out to other parties as required," he said.
Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe accused the Conservatives of flouting the rules of democracy. "This government also presents a backward, narrow ideology that doesn't represent the values and interests of Quebecers. The Harper government has turned its back on Quebec," he said.
A parliamentary committee recently recommended the government be found in contempt for failing to provide enough information about the costs of its crime legislation.
Speaker Peter Milliken ruled earlier this month that, "on its face," the government appeared to have breached the parliamentary privilege of MPs by refusing to release the information.
The non-confidence motion stated: "That the House agree with the finding of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs that the government is in contempt of Parliament, which is unprecedented in Canadian parliamentary history, and consequently, the House has lost confidence in the government."
The vote will be seen as a formal finding of contempt against the government, because the motion clearly used the word "contempt" and was approved by the Commons, said one constitutional scholar.
"This will go down in the history books as a finding of contempt," said Ned Franks, a professor emeritus at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.
The Conservatives hold 143 of the 308 seats in the Commons. The Liberals hold 77, the Bloc Quebecois, 47, and the NDP, 36.
There are two independent MPs, Helena Guergis and Andre Arthur, and three vacant seats.
Government house leader John Baird accused the opposition of putting their lust for power above the interests of Canadians.
"I'm saddened that a Parliament which has accomplished a lot recently will come to an end because of the reckless actions of the Liberal, Bloc Quebecois and NDP coalition in forcing an unwanted and unnecessary election on Canadians," he said.
Baird noted the opposition parties hold a majority on the committee that recommended the government be found in contempt of Parliament.
"What they aren't telling Canadians is that this was an opposition-stacked committee, who used the tyranny of the majority to get the predetermined outcome they wanted," Baird said. "They were the ones who demonstrated real contempt for Parliament, and they will have to answer to the Canadian people for that."
It is only the sixth time in history the federal government has been defeated on a confidence vote in the House of Commons. Previously, that had only happened to minority governments under Arthur Meighen in 1926, John Diefenbaker in 1963, Pierre Trudeau in 1974, Joe Clark in 1979 and Paul Martin in 2005.
The mood was electric in the packed Commons as MPs prepared to vote early Friday afternoon.
Afterward, a handful of opposition MPs threw up sheets of paper that fell to the green Commons floor like confetti.
Party leaders will fan out across the country on Saturday to begin a campaign expected to end May 2.
Harper is expected to make his first stop in Quebec City. Ignatieff will hold a rally in Ottawa before travelling to Montreal for his first campaign stop. NDP leader Jack Layton will kick off his campaign in Edmonton and Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe will also be in Montreal.
The Conservatives plan to focus on the economy, arguing a change of power would undermine the still-fragile recovery at a time when it faces threats such as Middle East turmoil, fallout from the tsunami in Japan and ongoing debt troubles in Europe.
The opposition parties will put the spotlight on what they describe as the Conservatives' lack of ethics and accountability.
The opposition will point to a string of recent controversies around the Tories, including charges that Conservative officials breached Canada's election law and allegations that a former adviser to the prime minister was lobbying for deals that would have benefited his fiancee, a former escort.
A new poll suggests the Conservatives hold a commanding lead in public support heading into the campaign. The Conservatives command 43-per-cent support among decided voters, putting them well within reach of a majority, according to an Ipsos Reid commissioned by Postmedia News and Global National.
The Liberals registered 24-per-cent support, the NDP are at 16 per cent, the Bloc at 10 per cent, and the Green Party at six per cent.
With files from Mike De Souza, Althia Raj and Tobi Cohen
amayeda@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/amayeda