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Tory minority in jeopardy as opposition talks coalition. Will there be another election?

Brian Peckford (ex Premier NFLD) sent a letter to the GG

"the Leader of the Bloc Quebecois and his party do not believe in the continuation of this country as presently constituted. So it is a contradiction in terms to have a Government of this country whose very existence depends on people who do not believe in this country.

I would submit, therefore,  that the coalition proposal is outside the constitution of this country. Our constitution is based on the Country as it presently exists. Given that you are to consider your options in light of the Constitution, the Coalition proposal does not qualify for consideration.

I contend that there is no provision in writing or convention which permits consideration of a proposal which sees the formation of a Government of this country which is dependent for its existence upon those who do not support the country as it presently exists."
 
Ummm... friend just passed this one on to me & what can I say - it the shoe fits......
 
CBC NEWSWORLD and CTV NEWSNET are both reporting that Parliament has been Prorogued.

More to fol
 
Ex-Dragoon said:
;) see reply#415 by recceguy.
Mine puts it into context.... ya gotta be drunk as a skunk for it to make sense.
 
NFLD Sapper said:
CBC NEWSWORLD and CTV NEWSNET are both reporting that Parliament has been Prorogued.

More to fol

I'm rather surprised that the GG granted the prorogue. What now? Hopefully an election in the new year. Not that anyone wants to pay another $200 million for an election so soon after the last one, but at least the people of Canada will have a voice if we do. Let the people decide!
 
From CTV.ca....
Gov. Gen Michaelle Jean has approved Prime Minister Stephen Harper's request to suspend Parliament, agreeing to put the government on hold until the end of January, CTV News has learned.

CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife reported the development from outside Rideau Hall.

Harper met with Jean on Thursday morning for more than two hours and asked her to support his plan to prorogue Parliament in order to avoid a confidence motion scheduled for Monday that would have likely toppled his government....

More on link
 
I can definately see the coalition parties losing votes if there is another election, especially with the NDP stepping aside from some of their main policy ideals. We don't need another $200 million election, but if that's what it takes to finally get some work done and go to shoring up the economy, I'm all for it.
 
Celticgirl said:
I'm rather surprised that the GG granted the prorogue. What now? Hopefully an election in the new year. Not that anyone wants to pay another $200 million for an election so soon after the last one, but at least the people of Canada will have a voice if we do. Let the people decide!

Celtic I think given her history (supporting the separatists in Quebec) she had no other choice.
 
NFLD Sapper said:
Celtic I think given her history (supporting the separatists in Quebec) she had no other choice.

It's a very interesting time for Canadian politics, that is for sure. I hope this puts an end to the Stooges' plans for a power grab.
 
Thucydides said:
A former GG speaks out. His Excellency was (according to rumor) prepared to use his reserve powers in the event of a constitutional crisis surrounding the repatriation of the constitution, so his opinion carries weight. On the other hand, the final half of the article is clear partisan hackery.

Doesnt read like a very neutral article, and the former GG is merely presenting an argument from the Lib-NDP side: if this possible action were actually illegal or politically unethical, the Conservatives would not be allowed to suggest it be done.
 
GG agrees to suspend Parliament: Harper
Meeting gives Tories reprieve from possible no-confidence vote Monday
Last Updated: Thursday, December 4, 2008 | 12:05 PM ET CBC News

Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean has granted a request from Stephen Harper to suspend Parliament, the prime minister announced on Thursday, a move that avoids a confidence vote set for Monday that could have toppled his minority government.

"Following my advice, the governor general has agreed to prorogue Parliament," Harper said outside Rideau Hall after a two-hour meeting with Jean.

"When Parliament resumes Jan. 26, the first order of business will be the presentation of a federal budget."

Harper would not discuss the content of the discussion with Jean, citing constitutional traditions.

But he added in French: "The economy is the priority now and the public is very frustrated with the situation in Parliament. We're all responsible for that."

A no-confidence vote could have precipitated the rise of a Liberal-NDP coalition. If the Governor General had refused the prime minister's request, she could have called an election had the Conservatives lost the no-confidence vote. Or she could have allowed the proposed Liberal-NDP coalition to govern if the no-confidence vote was successful.

But the decision to suspend Parliament only gives the Tories a reprieve until late January, when they plan to table a budget that could set them up for a no-confidence vote.

Harper waved to onlookers after his limousine arrived at Rideau Hall at 9:30 a.m ET Thursday. He was greeted by about 40 chanting supporters, including Conservative staffers. A single anti-Harper demonstrator stood waving a sign reading "Harper Must Go."

Harper has pledged to use "every legal means" to prevent a Liberal-NDP coalition government, backed by the Bloc Québécois, from taking power.

Making his case
Harper's visit comes a day after he took to the airwaves to make his case that his government should remain in power.

In a five-minute, pre-recorded statement Wednesday night, Harper spoke bluntly against a proposed Liberal-NDP coalition backed by "separatists," saying the federal government must stand unequivocally for keeping the country together in the face of the global economic crisis.

Jean returned to Ottawa on Wednesday after cutting short a two-week trip to Europe.

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion, who would head the proposed coalition, said he sent a letter to Jean on Wednesday, urging her to reject any attempt by Harper to prorogue Parliament.

Dion responded to Harper's address with his own taped rebuttal in which he defended the notion of a proposed coalition government "as normal and current practice in many parts of the world."

The Conservatives have lost the confidence of the majority of members of the House of Commons — largely because of their, in the opposition's view, inadequate reaction to Canada's financial crunch — and thus, "have lost the right to govern," Dion said.

Economic statement lambasted
The coalition sprang up after the Tories released an economic statement that was lambasted by the opposition parties.

They accused Harper of doing nothing to address the current economic crisis and slammed what they saw as ideologically driven measures such as the proposed elimination of subsidies for political parties, a three-year ban on the right of civil servants to strike and limits on the ability of women to sue for pay equity.

Harper has since backed down on those contentious issues, but the opposition has pushed forward with the coalition.

The coalition — which would have a 24-member cabinet composed of six NDP and 18 Liberal MPs — has vowed to make an economic stimulus package a priority, proposing a multibillion-dollar plan that would include help for the auto and forestry sectors.

With 77 Liberal MPs and 37 New Democrats, plus the support of 49 Bloc members, the three parties have more seats than the 143 held by the Tories.

With files from the Canadian Press

 
GG approves PM's request to suspend Parliament
Updated Thu. Dec. 4 2008 12:06 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean has approved Prime Minister Stephen Harper's request to suspend Parliament, agreeing to put the government on hold until the end of January.

Harper addressed the media at just before noon after about two-and-a-half hours of meetings at Rideau Hall.

The Governor General agreed to prorogue Parliament following his advice, Harper said.

He said the decision reflects the will of Canadians.

"Last Friday I asked Canadians to give us their opinion on the parliamentary situation. That feedback has been overwhelming and very clear. They want the Canadian government to continue to work on the agenda they voted for -- our plan to strengthen the economy."

Harper also said that when Parliament resumes, the first item on the agenda will be the Conservative budget.

Harper was seeking a suspension of Parliament in order to avoid a confidence motion scheduled for Monday that would have likely toppled his government.

The Liberals and NDP have agreed to form a coalition, with the support of the Bloc Quebecois, and have signaled their intention to bring down the government over the fiscal update that was introduced last week and would have come before Commons for a vote on Monday.

They had hoped Jean would deny the prorogation request and let the confidence motion go ahead. If it did, and the government fell, Jean would have to decide whether to send Canadians to the polls for another election, or grant the coalition the chance to win the confidence of the House of Commons and possibly take over government.

Jean returned home early from a central European tour on Wednesday to deal with the political crisis that has gripped the nation.

The decision Thursday followed a rare nationally televised address by Harper on Wednesday night.

In the five-minute pre-taped broadcast Harper said the opposition plans to oust his government and seize power would cripple the country's economy.

"The opposition is attempting to impose this deal without your say, without your consent and without your vote," he said.

Harper also signaled he would be willing to work with the opposition parties in order to deliver an economic plan that will help Canada navigate perilous economic times.

"Canada's government is acting to deal with the crisis right now," he said, adding that the opposition parties should "bring forward specific proposals.

"In fact, we have already changed some of our own proposals to meet their concerns."

Later on Wednesday, Liberal Leader Stephane Dion took to the airwaves after a major delay that saw national networks filling time as they waited for the tape to arrive.

He said the Conservatives have done little to help Canadians cope with the global economic crisis.

"Stephen Harper still refuses to propose measures to stimulate the Canadian economy," said Dion. "His mini-budget last week demonstrated that his priority is partisanship and settling ideological scores.

The NDP's Jack Layton said Wednesday that while other countries have been working to stimulate their economies, the Conservatives have been wasting time with partisan politics.

"Stephen Harper simply refused to act," he said, adding the Conservatives also attacked the rights of workers and women.

The opposition began to cobble together their coalition after the Tories proposed last week to cut public funding for political parties as a part of their fall economic update.

The update also lacked a sufficient stimulus package, the opposition has said.

 
Dion, Layton and Duceppe have not demonstrated they have the confidence of their parties.

Until there is a stand up vote on confidence they are merely offering their opinions on what their members will do.

They can claim that Harper has lost the confidence of the House until the cows come home.  That doesn't make it so.

Until that confidence vote happens the GG, by convention, only has one advisor:  The person who has most recently demonstrated through a vote in the house that he has the confidence of the House.  The House was of that mind as recently as 2 or 3 weeks ago when it rose to support the Throne Speech.

With respect to Her Excellency's past separatist proclivities:  Apparently both Her Majesty and the PM found her to their tastes.  I don't think it needs to go beyond that.

PS to Zell, I noted that you mentioned that you got paid to Volunteer for your party of choice.  Just curious, are you getting paid now?
 
Kirkhill said:
With respect to Her Excellency's past separatist proclivities:  Apparently both Her Majesty and the PM found her to their tastes.  I don't think it needs to go beyond that.

As it should Kirkhill, was just trying to answer Celtics question.
 
The Governor General has made a decision that is, simultaneously:

• Good for the country, in the here and now; and

• Bad for the Constitution in the near, mid and long terms.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, leader of the party of which I am a member and to which I am a substantial contributor, made a grossly stupid political miscalculation* that opened the way for a coalition of the separatists, the economically illiterate and the politically inept.

Constitutionally, Governor General Jean should have made him face the music: defeat and political disgrace. He richly deserves both for being a bloody idiot. She should then have invited M. Dion to gather his band of dimwits and misfits and form a government. Instead she has broken a Constitutional convention – something far more important than any law – and, by so doing, she has further weakened an already retarded democracy (unequal representation in the elected chamber and an appointed chamber are sad vestiges of a mid 19th century system that mistrusted mass democracy).

Practically, Mme. Jean has saved us from what would, almost certainly, have been a (Monty) Pythonesque economic situation in which the Liberals and NDP would have spread unnecessary, even damaging, financial bail outs around all their clients in Ontario, Québec and Atlantic Canada.

It may be that Harper will regain some of his strategic sense over the holiday period and face parliament with a new throne speech and an almost immediate budget aimed at providing stimulus by funding infrastructure and procurement projects that are ready to break ground/start production right now. Any stimulus that cannot be begun until 2010 is, probably, going to backfire by fuelling inflation during the recovery process – quick reaction is needed and any project that has not already cleared all the various national, provincial and local approval hurdles must be let to wait in the queue. Provinces and cities that can expedite approval should get money, now; others: nothing new. Defence spending, especially some DND infrastructure, may be a good candidate for funding – In my day every base, command and group in NDHQ had millions and billions of ‘approved’ projects in the desk drawers – just waiting for money.

In the short and mid term the Conservative Party needs to reconsider Mr. Harper’s leadership value; I think he has debased his own, political currency – perhaps so badly that he will cost his party the next election if he is still leader.


--------------------
* By proposing a policy that I wholeheartedly support but that could not pass in the current situation.

 
NFLD Sapper said:
Oh joy "Taliban" Jack is flapping his mouth now........

He's basically saying that regardless of the amendments Harper will most certainly make to the budget in January, he [Layton] will forge ahead with a non-confidence motion and opposition coalition anyway. He's basically showing the people of Canada what many of us have known all along - this is a POWER GRAB. Layton and Dion are not acting on our behalf or in our best interests, but are selfishly pursuing their own personal agendas. As for Duceppe, he has never minced words. He fully admits to his separatist agenda. At least he is honest.  ::)
 
In the short and mid term the Conservative Party needs to reconsider Mr. Harper’s leadership value; I think he has debased his own, political currency – perhaps so badly that he will cost his party the next election if he is still leader.

Find one other competent leader to replace Harper. There isn't any.
 
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