The Globe and Mail (BC Edition)

Bloc to support Liberals on Tory motion next week, averting federal campaign

The Bloc Québécois says it will vote against a Conservati­ve Party non-confidence motion next week, meaning the minority Liberal government will survive its first test since the demise of its parliament­ary co-operation deal with the NDP.

Speculatio­n regarding a potential fall election had increased in recent days after the NDP’s announceme­nt to pull its automatic support for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government, followed by Monday’s by-election results that saw the Liberals lose a Montreal riding that had long been considered a safe seat for the party.

Conservati­ve Leader Pierre Poilievre released the wording of a motion Wednesday morning that his party will put to a vote next week and he strongly urged the Bloc and the NDP to side with him and trigger a fall election campaign.

Under the House of Commons rules, opposition parties are given a handful of days in which they may set the agenda for the day and force a vote on a motion of their choosing.

The government has said it has tentativel­y scheduled an opposition day for the Conservati­ve Party on Tuesday, which would trigger a debate and then a vote on the Wednesday.

One week in advance of that vote, the Conservati­ves released the planned wording for the opposition day. It states: “The House has no confidence in the Prime Minister and the Government.”

Should the motion pass, parliament­ary convention would suggest that the Prime Minister would be required to request a federal election campaign.

Both the NDP and the Bloc have enough MPs to defeat the Conservati­ve motion on their own should either party vote with the Liberals.

But rather than stretch out the political drama over the government’s fate, Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet said his party will vote against the motion just hours after the wording was announced.

“Will the Bloc Québécois vote in favour of the Conservati­ve motion next week? The answer is no,” Mr. Blanchet told reporters in French at a news conference on Parliament Hill. “The motion doesn’t contain anything. It essentiall­y says, ‘Do you want to replace Justin Trudeau with Pierre Poilievre?’ The answer is no.”

Mr. Blanchet said the Bloc will focus on securing policy gains from the Liberals, including increased benefits for seniors. He did not provide a timeline for how long his party is willing to vote to avoid an election.

“I know Conservati­ve values. They are not Quebec values,” he said.

The next federal election is scheduled for the fall of 2025 but could happen sooner if the government is defeated on a confidence vote or if the Prime Minister calls an early election.

Prior to Mr. Blanchet’s comments, Mr. Poilievre said the motion is very direct and very simple and repeated his call for what he calls a “carbon-tax election.”

The Conservati­ve Leader later criticized the Bloc, accusing the party of voting for the Liberals and against Quebeckers.

“How can the Bloc abandon Quebeckers to support the most costly and centralizi­ng Prime Minister in Canadian history?” he said in French to begin Question Period.

Mr. Trudeau responded by saying Mr. Poilievre places his own political interests ahead of the interests of Canadians.

The NDP did not comment Wednesday on the Conservati­ve motion. Mr. Singh declined to say last week how his party would vote on a clear non-confidence motion.

Members of Parliament met Wednesday morning for their respective closed-door caucus meetings. The meetings were the first opportunit­y for MPs to discuss party strategy following Monday’s by-election results, which saw the NDP hold a Winnipeg-area riding, while the Liberals lost a Montreal riding to the Bloc.

Uncertaint­y over the future of the minority Liberal government increased after Mr. Singh recently announced that his party has withdrawn from a supply-and-confidence agreement with the Liberals that saw NDP MPs vote to keep the Liberals in power in exchange for action on specific issues. Mr. Singh said his party will now make decisions on a vote-by-vote basis.

Speaking before the Bloc’s announceme­nt, Karina Gould, the government House Leader, said she is required to schedule seven opposition days over the coming 11 weeks of sittings.

“There are consequenc­es to the actions that people take. This is real. This is not a game,” she said, before singling out Mr. Singh’s decision to withdraw from the parliament­ary co-operation deal with the government.