Laura Osman
Tue, September 24, 2024
OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre urged MPs to defeat the Liberal government on Tuesday, but opposition parties are turning the debate on his non-confidence motion into a referendum on the Conservative party's policies instead.
Poilievre introduced a non-confidence motion in the opening minutes of the House of Commons sitting Tuesday, delivering a campaign-style speech laying out his vision for Canada under a Conservative government.
He said his plan is "to bring home the promise of Canada, of a powerful paycheque that earns affordable food, gas and homes and safe neighbourhoods where anyone from anywhere can do anything. The biggest and most open land of opportunity the world has ever seen: that is our vision."
Polls have favoured the Conservatives for more than a year now, and if they were to hold true in the next election it could result in a Conservative majority government.
Poilievre told the House if that happens he would lower taxes and eliminate the price on carbon, instead fighting climate change by approving large-scale green projects and using the revenues to reduce government debt.
"We will cap government spending with a dollar-for-dollar law that requires we find $1 of savings for every new dollar of spending," Poilievre said.
"We will cut bureaucracy, waste and consulting contracts."
Poilievre and his party have not been specific about where exactly those cuts will come from. The NDP's Jagmeet Singh asked Poilievre if his government would dismantle the dental-care program the Liberals instituted in co-ordination with the NDP, but the Conservative leader wouldn't say one way or another.
Those unidentified cuts are the very reason Singh said his party wouldn't vote to bring down the government.
"We are going to fight today against Conservative cuts and against the Conservative motion," Singh told the House.
Debate on the motion will conclude Tuesday with the vote scheduled to take place Wednesday afternoon.
Both the NDP and the Bloc Québécois indicated last week they would not support the non-confidence motion because they don't support the Conservatives. If they vote no, the motion will be defeated and the Liberal government will survive its first test since its supply-and-confidence deal with the NDP ended earlier this month.
If the motion were to pass, the government would be defeated and Canadians very likely would see an immediate election.
The Bloc Québécois said they'd rather use the opportunity presented by the minority Parliament to negotiate with the Liberals, rather than trigger an election that would likely install Poilievre as prime minister.
"We listen to the Conservatives and are not sure that we're so eager to see them take power," the Bloc's House leader Alain Therrien told the House in French on Tuesday.
He said Poilievre has no plan to address the challenges of Quebec's distinct society.
"There are situations in Quebec that are quite different from the rest of Canada," he said.
The Bloc has asked the Liberals to green-light the funding for their private member's bill to raise pension payments for seniors under the age of 75.
The government hasn't committed to doing that. The parliamentary budget officer has estimated the proposed change would cost about $16 billion over five years.
The debate in the House more closely resembled a debate over the Conservative vision for Canada than the government's, Liberal House leader Karina Gould said during question period.
"Today what we are doing is demonstrating that this House doesn't have confidence in the Conservative Party of Canada," she said.
The prime minister was not in Ottawa for the debate, and is instead representing Canada at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
He was asked about the non-confidence motion after U.S. President Joe Biden used his speech at the UN to reflect on his decision to withdraw from his party's ticket in the upcoming election, saying that he chose to think about the people he serves rather than his own power.
"The Conservatives are very much thinking about power right now," Trudeau said in response.
"I'm thinking about how we can best help Canadians. I'm thinking about how to put the best balance sheet in the G7 in service of Canadians, to invest in Canadians. Confident countries invest in their citizens. Right now, Pierre Poilievre is offering cuts."
The Conservatives have another chance to introduce a non-confidence motion on Thursday during a second opposition day in the House of Commons. There are a total of seven opposition days required this fall, of which five will go to the Conservatives.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2024.
Laura Osman, The Canadian Press
Canada’s Tories target Trudeau as they seek seismic shift in political landscape
Leyland Cecco in Toronto
Tue, September 24, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. MDT·5 min read
Justin Trudeau at a summit at the United Nations headquarters in New York City, on Sunday.Photograph: Caitlin Ochs/Reuters
Canada’s Conservative party will make its first bid to unseat prime minister Justin Trudeau this week, the latest attempt in its decade-long aim of restoring the Tories to power.
Buoyed by favourable polls, a cost of living crisis and an increasingly unpopular prime minister, the Conservative leader, Pierre Poilievre, will introduce a motion of non-confidence in the minority government: a long-shot bid to force the government to call an election.
The move, which lawmakers will debate on Wednesday, is doomed to fail, with smaller parties agreeing to temporarily support the incumbent Liberal party.
Related: Justin Trudeau under pressure as his party loses Montreal election
But the attack underscores the fragile state of Canada’s governing party and the raw political calculation leaders are making as they jockey for position before the next federal election, which must occur before the fall of 2025.
One polling aggregator has the Conservatives winning a strong majority, relegating all other parties to “also-ran” status. Another has Poilievre’s Tories at 42% support, with the Liberals at 24%.
When Trudeau eked out an electoral victory in 2021, his party was forced into its second consecutive minority government, meaning the Liberals lacked sufficient representation in parliament to pass legislation on their own. In order to implement their agenda, the Liberals were forced to make a “confidence and supply” pact with the leftwing New Democrats (NDP).
But earlier this month, the NDP withdrew from the agreement, saying the Liberals “don’t deserve another chance”. The move cast the country in political uncertainty and reflected a political landscape that has changed dramatically since the agreement was first made.
In his ninth year as prime minister, Trudeau is deeply unpopular and facing calls within his party to step down to avoid a deeply embarrassing electoral loss that could push the party to a distant third-place finish.
“I think you are only here for another year,” a steelworker told Trudeau in a recent exchange that captured the fatigue and frustration many Canadians feel towards the prime minister.
Jagmeet Singh, the NDP leader, has failed to convert his own political popularity into electoral success and also faces evergreen questions over the relevance of a party whose legislative aims seem indistinguishable from those of the Liberals.
“They don’t want to run to election anytime soon,” said Lori Turnbull, director of Dalhousie University’s school of public administration. “They still have to prove that they got something out of this deal and he needs to show that party has its own agenda, apart from what they’ve done for the Liberals for the past two and a half years.”
Related: Canada turning away more foreigners amid rise in anti-immigration sentiment
Poilievre, the combative Conservative leader, has found immense success in his laser-focused attack on Trudeau’s handling of a protracted cost-of-living crisis.
The chief target of Poilievre’s attacks has been Canada’s nationwide carbon tax, a levy once heralded as a global model that is now all but doomed by national politics.
Poilievre’s attacks on the tax have landed him unlikely allies: Singh recently backed away from the carbon levy, after supporting it for years, incorrectly suggesting the revenue-neutral tax put an unfair burden on “working people’s shoulders”. Economists and political scientists agree that lower-income Canadians come out ahead under the scheme, with nearly 80% of residents receiving more in quarterly payments than they pay in tax. Poilievre has also targeted Singh for propping up a Liberal government which Singh himself has suggested is captive to corporate interests.
“He is a fake, a phony and a fraud. How can anyone ever believe what this sellout NDP leader says in the future?” Poilievre said to Singh during a sitting of parliament last week.
Singh’s withdrawal of support for the Liberals might have harmed his own electoral prospects, but inadvertently benefited another leader: Yves-François Blanchet of the sovereigntist Bloc Québécois.
Blanchet has stepped in to fill the void left by the NDP’s exit from the confidence and supply agreement, but he has been open about the hardheaded political calculus behind the move.
“It’s not [about] supporting the government. It’s [about] not having them fall, soon,” Blanchet told CBC News. “First, I will let this vote instigated by the Conservatives go through. They will lose it, and by the way lose face, and this is what they deserve presently because they are not doing politics in a clean way … I ask for things and if I don’t get it, [the government] will fall. And that’s the end to it.”
The Bloc’s rise, in tandem with the renewed popularity of Quebec’s sovereigntist movement, has also come at a cost for the Liberals.
In a surprise byelection defeat last week, Trudeau’s party lost the riding of LaSalle–Émard–Verdun, a district that had been held almost exclusively by Liberals for more than 50 years. It followed another defeat in June, when the Liberals lost a safe seat in downtown Toronto.
Related: After nine years in office, is it time for Justin Trudeau to go?
The two losses reflect a souring public opinion of Trudeau’s government: the cost of living has surged alongside a housing shortage and policy failures and mismanagement have eroded strong support for immigration.
Despite such setbacks, Turnbull said that the Liberals were still in a position of comparative strength.
“As much as the Liberals look to be in a very weak position – because of the polling, because of the byelection losses, because ministers are leaving and staffers are leaving – even though it’s a complete mess, they still have a really significant minority in the House of Commons,” she said. “In order for there to be a loss of confidence, all three opposition parties would have to agree. And I don’t think we’re there yet.”
In the news today: MPs set to debate Tory non-confidence motion
The Canadian Press
Tue, September 24, 2024
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed...
MPs set to debate Tory non-confidence motion
The House of Commons is set to debate a Conservative non-confidence motion today, as the Tories try to take down Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government.
It's the first test for the minority government since the NDP ended its supply-and-confidence deal with the Liberals earlier this month.
The Bloc Québécois and NDP have already said they will not support the motion, which will be voted on Wednesday.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been criticizing NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh for his refusal to bring down the Liberals.
That all but eliminates the possibility of a snap election this week.
Here's what else we're watching...
Inquiry to hear parliamentary security officials
A federal inquiry into foreign interference is slated to hear today from parliamentary security officials including House of Commons sergeant-at-arms Patrick McDonell.
The testimony could shed new light on efforts by hostile countries to target parliamentarians via cyberspace and what officials are doing to counter the threats.
The inquiry's latest public hearings are focusing on the capacity of federal agencies to detect, deter and counter foreign meddling.
Chief electoral officer Stéphane Perrault, whose agency has floated several proposals to tighten the security of candidate nominations, is also slated to testify.
Elections Canada has suggested barring non-citizens from helping choose candidates, requiring parties to publish contest rules and explicitly outlawing behaviour such as voting more than once.
Opening arguments expected in Hoggard trial
Opening arguments are expected to get underway today in the sexual assault trial of Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard.
Hoggard is facing a sexual assault charge for an incident alleged to have happened on June 25, 2016, in Kirkland Lake, Ont.
The former Hedley frontman pleaded not guilty to that charge on Monday.
His trial is taking place in nearby Haileybury, a community within Temiskaming Shores in the northeastern part of the province.
Hoggard had elected at the end of last year to be tried by a jury in the Superior Court of Justice.
Schools figuring out new world of cellphone bans
From cellphone "hotels" to patchwork policies to recalibrating lesson plans, teachers and schools across Canada are learning to navigate a classroom without cellphones.
But some say that despite recent bans and restrictions on the phones, little has changed.
A number of provinces, including Saskatchewan, Ontario, Manitoba and Alberta, introduced plans to limit cellphone usage beginning this school year. There is a mix of restrictions along with outright bans.
The changes come as educators try to get students to log off and stay focused, noting online squabbles have forced their way into classrooms and social interactions among youth have dwindled.
It’s early days, with policies still being crafted, leading to some schools finding creative ways to curb students' itchy cellphone fingers.
Home renovations rising in major markets: report
A new report says a boost in spending on home renovations during the pandemic has helped contribute to higher prices for single-family homes despite downward market pressure.
The report by Re/Max Canada looked at the evolution of housing stock and trends affecting home values in the Toronto and Vancouver areas, Canada's two largest real estate markets.
The report, released Tuesday, said national renovation spending increased by an estimated $300 billion between 2019 and 2023, led by home renewal and revitalization projects in the Toronto and Vancouver markets.
That marked an eight per cent jump from the previous five-year period.
The report said revitalization "remains one of the most underestimated factors behind escalating housing values."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2024.
Minority governments, major stakes: a look at their role in federal politics
Jim Bronskill
Tue, September 24, 2024 at 2:00 a.m. MDT·4 min read
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority government is expected to face its first serious test this week since the NDP withdrew from an agreement to support the Liberals.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has put forward a motion stating the House of Commons has no confidence in the prime minister or the government. Members will debate the motion on Tuesday and vote on it Wednesday.
The New Democrats and Bloc Québécois have said they intend to vote against the motion, avoiding a general election.
What is a minority government?
A minority government lacks a majority of the members of the House of Commons, meaning it depends on support from members of other parties to pass legislation, including budgetary measures.
Are minority governments a rarity?
They're actually quite common. Thirteen minority governments have emerged from federal elections. Two others were a result of governments being replaced between elections. (However, Parliament did not meet during one of the two, the government of Alexander Mackenzie, who soon went on to win a majority.)
Justin Trudeau has presided over two minorities, as did his predecessor, Stephen Harper.
How do they work?
There have been no coalition governments arising from a minority scenario at the federal level.
However, until recently the Liberals and NDP had a supply-and-confidence deal that would keep the minority government led by Trudeau in power and ensure progress on some mutually agreeable policies.
In addition, between 1972 and 1974, the NDP had an informal understanding with the Liberals that kept the government of Pierre Trudeau, Justin's father, in place.
More common are minority governments that secure support for key votes on an ad hoc basis.
Minority governments have also been known to act as if they held a majority, notably the Progressive Conservative governments of John Diefenbaker in the 1950s and '60s and Joe Clark in 1979, as well as the early period of Lester B. Pearson's Liberal government in the '60s.
Do minority governments last as long as majority ones?
Generally, no. A minority government could make it to the end of a traditional four-year mandate. However, they are often defeated on an important vote in the House or pull the plug themselves with the aim of securing a stronger mandate at the ballot box.
The length of minority governments varies dramatically, from the brief tenure of Arthur Meighen's Conservatives in 1926 to the stint of more than three years and seven months of William Lyon Mackenzie King's Liberals from 1921-25.
How do minority governments end?
Parliamentary practice and tradition dictate that if the government is defeated in the House on a question of confidence, voters head to the polls.
"What constitutes a question of confidence in the government varies with the circumstances," says the authoritative volume "House of Commons Procedure and Practice."
"Confidence is not a matter of parliamentary procedure, nor is it something on which the Speaker can be asked to rule."
Does that mean losing a vote in the House spells the end of a minority government?
No. Minority governments of Pearson and Pierre Trudeau each lost a number of votes in House without resigning.
A confidence motion may be clearly worded like the one the Conservatives have proposed this week. It could be a motion on a matter the government declares a question of confidence, or it might be related to government budgetary policy or the reply to the Speech from the Throne.
Even so, Pearson lost a vote on a budget matter but survived upon seeking, and winning, on a clear vote of confidence.
Has there been a particularly memorable defeat for a minority government?
Papers were tossed into the air in the House after Clark's government fell in 1979 in a 139-133 vote on its budget.
"Only six months ago, Canadians voted to change the government of Canada because they wanted to change the direction of this country," Clark told a news conference after the vote. "By their action tonight, the opposition parties are saying that Canadians were wrong to make that decision."
However, the defeat set the stage for the early 1980 return of the Liberals led by Pierre Trudeau with a majority mandate.
(Sources: Transition to the 44th Parliament: Questions and Answers by Andre Barnes and Laurence Brosseau of the Library of Parliament; House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition; The Canadian Encyclopedia.)
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2024.
Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press
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