The Liberal Party gave notice earlier this week it will put forward the motion.
It needs the support of the combined opposition to topple the government but that is a given since the two other opposition parties - the New Democrats (NDP) led by Jack Layton and the separatist Bloc Quebecois (BQ) led by Gilles Duceppe have said they will support it.
Even if this motion fails, the government can fall on a budget vote. All three opposition parties have given the budget a thumbs down and have said they will vote against it.
The Conservatives have been in office since January 2006 but has governed on the basis of support from one or more of the opposition parties since Harper lacks a majority.
The vote on the non-confidence motion is expected by early afternoon Friday and an election could be held on May 2 or May 9 if the government falls, as expected.
Political observers say Harper is hoping that his government will fall since he is confident that an election will give him the majority he wants.
His hands are tied in calling an election since Canada now has a fixed-date election, which means that the Prime Minister is unable to dissolve Parliament at will as in the practice in most Westminster systems, including Trinidad and Tobago.
The Conservatives have been doing well in the polls and the Liberals, the only alternative to the governing party, have a weak leader in Michael Ignatieff.
Although it campaings nationally, the NDP doesn't an election to win, working instead on getting enough seats to influence legislative action. The BQ is a Quebec separatist party and fights only in that province, where it has majority support.
Harper's Conservatives hold 143 seats in Parliament. The Liberals have 77, the New Democrats 36 and the Bloc Quebecois 47.
There are 308 members in Canada's House of Commons, which means that Harper needs an additional 12 seats, which he is hoping to win in the vote-rich province of Ontario where it has been making some inroads against the Liberals.
Check election statistics
The latest national opinion poll suggests the Conservatives have a significant lead:
| CON |  43% |
| LIB | 24% |
| NDP | 16% |
| BQ | 10% |
| GRN | 6% |
Poll: Ipsos - Mar 22-23, 2011
For full coverage of Canada's national politics, please visit cbc.ca
No comments:
Post a Comment