Close X
Friday, November 1, 2024
ADVT 
National

Liberals survive budget confidence vote

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 27 Apr, 2021 12:49 AM
  • Liberals survive budget confidence vote

With the help of the NDP, Justin Trudeau's minority Liberal government has survived the last of three confidence votes on its massive budget.

The House of Commons approved Monday the government's general budgetary policy by a vote of 178-157.

Liberals were joined by New Democrat MPs in voting for the budget, in accordance with NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh's vow not to trigger an election in the midst of a deadly third wave of COVID-19.

Conservative, Bloc Quebecois and Green MPs voted against the budget.

Votes on the budget are considered confidence matters; had all opposition parties voted against it, the government would have fallen, plunging the country into an election.

The government survived two other confidence votes on the budget last week, on Conservative and Bloc Quebecois amendments to the budget motion.

The budget, introduced last week, commits just over $100 billion in new spending to stimulate the economic recovery, on top of an unprecedented, pandemic-induced deficit of $354 billion in the 2020-21 fiscal year.

The government must eventually introduce a budget implementation bill, which will also be a matter of confidence.

Prime Minister Trudeau last week insisted the big-spending budget is not a launching pad for an election. He would not rule out an election this year, noting that he leads a minority government and saying it will be "up to Parliament to decide when the election is."

While that sounded like Trudeau doesn't intend to pull the plug himself on his government, it didn't preclude the possibility that the Liberals could try to orchestrate their defeat at the hands of opposition parties. Nor did it preclude the possibility that Trudeau could at some point claim that a dysfunctional minority Parliament requires him to seek a majority mandate.

Some Liberal insiders believe Trudeau may pull the plug this summer, provided that the pandemic is relatively under control and vaccines are rolling out smoothly.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

What do we know about the P.1 variant?

What do we know about the P.1 variant?
As of April 1, there have been 483 cases of the P.1 variant across the country, with the majority of them — 379 — in B.C., Health Canada says.

What do we know about the P.1 variant?

Home sales set another record for the month of March in Lower Mainland

Home sales set another record for the month of March in Lower Mainland
Demand was most pronounced in rural and suburban areas. Delta – South saw a 195.8 per cent increase in sales over 2020 – the largest increase in Metro Vancouver.

Home sales set another record for the month of March in Lower Mainland

Online vaccine booking to open in B.C

Online vaccine booking to open in B.C
The news comes as case numbers spike in B.C. with a record-high daily total on Saturday of 1,072 new infections and an outbreak on the Vancouver Canucks hockey team.

Online vaccine booking to open in B.C

City plans tribute centre to mark Broncos crash

City plans tribute centre to mark Broncos crash
The announcement by the City of Humboldt comes on the eve of the third anniversary of the crash, which claimed the lives of 16 people and injured 13 others.

City plans tribute centre to mark Broncos crash

Shooting over Easter Long weekend in Coquitlam sends one man to hospital

Shooting over Easter Long weekend in Coquitlam sends one man to hospital
The RCMP say the shooting was targeted. There have been no arrests in this incident as of yet. 

Shooting over Easter Long weekend in Coquitlam sends one man to hospital

Vaccine selfies are the new social media currency

Vaccine selfies are the new social media currency
Experts say these selfies can encourage others to overcome their vaccine hesitancy, but may also incite jealousy among those who aren't eligible to book their appointments.

Vaccine selfies are the new social media currency