Photo by Sgt Serge Gouin, Rideau Hall
Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, stands with Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada at the Public Service Outstanding Achievement Awards ceremony at Rideau Hall.
Digital Journal -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised he would use "every legal means" possible to stop a Liberal-NDP-Bloc coalition from taking power. Harper met with Jean this morning shortly after 9:30 a.m. Eastern to request Parliament be prorogued until the New Year.
After a meeting lasting about two hours, Jean agreed to Harper's request to prorogue government until late January. The government will come back on Jan. 26 and deliver a budget the next day, Jan. 27.
"On my advice, the governor general has agreed to prorogue parliament," Harper said during a news conference outside Rideau Hall. "I cannot discuss the content of my discussion with governor general, [as] that is a constitutional tradition."
Recently, the leaders of the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois signed a formal agreement that threatened to take power from the Conservative party. The three parties agreed to form a coalition government for at least 18 months
under Liberal Leader Stephane Dion's leadership, giving them the majority of seats in Ottawa. Dion wrote to Jean on Wednesday to urge her to reject any attempts to prorogue Parliament. However, Jean sided with Harper (at least for now) and suspended government.
Before making her decision, Jean worked with constitutional experts who gave her advice on how to deal with the fiery situation. And throughout Canadian history, a governor general has never refused a prime minister's request to prorogue government.
The federal Conservatives no longer face a non-confidence vote in the House of Commons on Monday that would likely have led to the government's downfall.
Dion has been very critical of the Harper government, saying, "The Harper Conservatives have lost the confidence of the majority of members of the House of Commons. In our democracy, in our parliamentary system, in our Constitution, this means that they have lost the right to govern."
Harper fired back at Dion, saying, "At a time like this, a coalition with the separatists cannot help Canada...And the Opposition does not have the democratic right to impose a coalition with the separatists they promised voters would never happen...This is no time for backroom deals with the separatists; it is the time for Canada's government to focus on the economy."
The Conservative government has also suggested the coalition planned to topple government from the very beginning; the government presented a fall economic update which is not designed to be a budget. Instead, it's an instrument designed to signal intentions of what the government wants to do. The opposition slammed the Harper government for not doing enough to stimulate the economy, which Harper refuted, saying that is what his government would do when it presents the budget.
"There will be some additional stimulus, inevitably, in the budget given that we are seeing deteriorating fiscal conditions around the world," Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said during a broadcast interview.
"I believe Canadians across this country have as their main priority, the economy," Harper said outside Rideau Hall. "The opposition criticism is that we have to focus on the economy immediately and today's decision will give us an opportunity to focus on the economy and work together."
Speculation on the Next Steps
With the government returning in January, Canadians are now anxious to know what will happen to the government upon its return.
In my opinion, Harper is now very well positioned to hold on to power or fold government altogether and proceed to a general election.
Why? The Conservative Party now has time to work out a comprehensive stimulus budget that includes the concerns and proposals from the opposition. When it's presented on Jan. 27, the House will then have to support or reject it.
If it's supported, Harper will continue with his minority government. If the budget fails and is shot down, I suspect Harper will go back to the Gov. General and say:
"Look, I put everything in the budget the opposition requested and they are still turning it down. It's not about the budget it's about power and so I'm asking you to dissolve parliament and have another general election." Harper would then likely tell Canadians the same thing, that his government did everything possible.
A general election might not be a favourable option for many Canadians, but it's the best way for the Conservative Party to ensure the coalition does not take power immediately.
What do you think? Do you support the governor general's decision to prorogue government? What do you think will happen when the government returns in January?
