Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s main rival in Canada’s parliament on Tuesday introduced a motion of no confidence in the ruling Liberals, in the first major test of his unpopular minority government.
Following a debate in the House of Commons, a vote on the long-shot Conservative motion is scheduled on Wednesday.
Far ahead in public opinion polls, Tory leader Pierre Poilievre has been itching for a snap election since the leftist New Democratic Party (NDP) earlier this month tore up a coalition agreement with the Liberals, leaving the Trudeau administration vulnerable to being toppled.
Kicking off the debate, a combative Poilievre railed against Trudeau for what he said was a failure to address soaring costs of living, a housing crisis and crime, while doubling the national debt.
He said the promise of Canada, “after nine years of Liberal government, is broken.”
If elected prime minister, he said he would legislate “a common sense plan to axe the tax (on carbon emissions), build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime.”
During an appearance in New York on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Monday evening, Trudeau acknowledged that Canadians are facing “a really tough time.”
“People are hurting. People are having trouble paying for groceries, paying for rent, filling up the tank,” and “are looking at change,” he said.
But he vowed to “keep fighting.”
At a news conference at the United Nations on Tuesday, Trudeau criticized Poilievre for suggesting “the best way to get through these difficult times is to cut services and programs that Canadians rely on.”
“I’m thinking about how we can best help Canadians,” he said.
The no-confidence motion is not expected to succeed after two smaller political factions have signaled they will side with the government and vote against it.
But Poilievre has vowed to keep trying, with another opportunity to bring down the government to be presented in early October.
Trudeau swept to power in 2015, and has managed to hold on by defeating two of Poilievre’s predecessors in 2019 and 2021 ballots.
The deal with the New Democratic Party to prop up the Liberals would have kept his government in office until late 2025.
But the NDP, seeing its alignment with the Liberals hurting its own popularity, exited the deal early.
According to a recent Angus Reid poll, the Conservatives are well ahead of the Liberals, with 43 percent of voting intention against 21 percent for the ruling party. The NDP is at 19 percent.
In Canada’s Westminster parliamentary system, a ruling party must hold the confidence of the House of Commons, which means maintaining support from a majority of members.
The Liberals currently have 153 seats, versus 119 for the Conservatives, 33 for the Bloc Quebecois, and the NDP 25.
Political analysts who spoke to AFP suggest an election likely won’t happen until at least spring 2025.
