The Liberals will face a third vote of no confidence from the Conservatives on Monday, but the government is likely to survive with NDP support.
Members of Parliament are supposed to vote on a motion citing NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh’s criticism of the Liberals and calling on the House to agree with Singh and vote to topple the government.
Singh said last week that he will not support the Conservatives, so the motion will likely fail.
The House is also supposed to vote on an NDP motion calling on the government to extend the GST exemption and the $250 “Canadian worker rebate” to fully retired seniors and people who rely on disability benefits.
Those votes will come after MPs take up a debate on a point of privilege raised by Conservative deputy leader Melissa Lantsman on Friday.
As opposition parties continue to use procedural tactics to block each other’s motions, the House faces a Tuesday deadline to vote to approve billions of dollars in government spending.
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Treasury Board Chair Anita Anand has asked Parliament to approve $21.6 billion to fund programs including housing, dental care and the national school feeding program.
If that is not approved, some programs could face a cash shortfall, including veterans benefits and natural disaster assistance. The spending request is scheduled to be debated and voted on Tuesday night.
The last two opposition motions of the year must also be filed by Tuesday. The Conservatives are allocated the remaining opposition day motions, with both expected to be more votes of no confidence.
All of this was scheduled when House Speaker Greg Fergus halted a two-month-long filibuster to make way for debate on spending and opposition motions.
The House has been paralyzed since late September over a filibuster on a conservative privilege motion. This relates to the Liberals’ refusal to provide unredacted documents about a now-defunct green technology fund to Parliament and the RCMP.
On Friday, Lantsman raised a question of privilege over an anti-Israeli war protest that temporarily blocked the entrance to a building housing MP offices last week. He said NDP MPs had supported the protesters, who temporarily disrupted members’ ability to reach the House of Commons.
Debate on his motion is expected to resume on Monday. Privilege motions take priority over most other House business.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
