Posted on 12/04/2008 6:11:15 PM PST by bruinbirdman
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has won a bid to suspend parliament, blocking an opposition attempt to topple his minority government.
The governor general agreed to Mr Harper's request, unprecedented in the country, after talks.
If the request had been rejected, he would have had to step down or face a confidence vote he was sure to lose.
Opposition parties had called the vote for Monday, accusing the government of failing to shore up the economy.
Acting head of state Michaelle Jean
Governor General Michaelle Jean agreed to prorogue - or suspend - parliament until 26 January when the government is set to present its economic plan.
Ms Jean - the representative of head of state Queen Elizabeth II - has the right to make a final decision on such matters.
"Today's decision will give us an opportunity - I'm talking about all the parties - to focus on the economy and work together," Mr Harper said after the two-and-a-half-hour private meeting.
The Conservatives immediately shut down parliament, ending all debate.
The head of the main Liberal opposition party, Stephane Dion, said he was still committed to bringing down Mr Harper's government unless he makes a "monumental change" in dealing with the economy and other parties.
"For the first time in the history of Canada the prime minister is running away from the parliament of Canada," Mr Dion was quoted as saying by AP news agency.
Opposition New Democrat leader Jack Layton called it a sad day.
"He's trying to lock the door of parliament so that the elected people cannot speak," Mr Layton said. "He's trying to save his job."
Political drama
A prime minister's request to temporarily suspend parliament had never been turned down, but nor had such a request been made
(Excerpt) Read more at news.bbc.co.uk ...
LMAO!!
Wow, I wouldn't hold my breath on that... These leftists are just the Canadian version of our own scumbags, the Democrats. They will use the holiday break only to fine-tune their strategy and intensify their efforts to remove Harper.
Wow, thank you two for shedding light on this. I took a Canadian History class in college but forgot about how the GG works in Canada.
Not once the vote is put to the House. And technically the Prime Minister serves at the Governor General’s pleasure, the requirement being the PM has the confidence of the Parliament
You sail?>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Funny you asked.
Yes, passionately.
Mostly in the tropics.
I am one of only a few who has played the pipes from the bow,up to a mooring buoy off the harbor on St. Johns in the Virgin Islands. They knew we had arrived, and immediately were invited to play at a wedding taking place on shore within the hour. What a party!Thats what I like about sailing.
Lancey Howard wrote: "LMAO!!"
Aunties understanding of Canadian political history is a bit imperfect.
Harper caused parliament to be prorogued in August 2007 to prevent Royal Assent of a bill that the opposition had combined to pass that would have unrealistically required Canada to implement the Kyoto accord, something which Grit governments had failed to do over more than a decade. Prorogue kills any unfinished business on the Order Papers of both the House and the Senate and kills any Bill that has been passed but had not yet received Royal Assent.
Also, the Grits beloved 'ti Jean had more than once used prorogue for partisan political purposes, the latest having been to attempt to frustrate timely delivery of an Auditor General's report on the sponsorship scandal.
Thanks for the correction.
You’re welcome.
:-)
Wonderful!
Do you keep a boat down there somewhere?
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