Liberals will try to bring down government.

If Harper tries to delay his defeat by procedural tactics this will be one more weapon for the opposition to club him with. He has already tried to weasel out of the situation of his own creation by dropping the party funding cut from his bill. But this surely will not work unless the Liberals want to hand Harper a wonderful Xmas present by showing that they are the same useless opposition as they were in the last session and are considering nothing but their own financial straits.


Liberals will try to bring down government: report
Last Updated: Friday, November 28, 2008 2:40 PM ET
CBC News
Former Liberal prime minister Jean Chrétien refused to comment on whether he met with former New Democratic Party leader Ed Broadbent while on his way to his office in Ottawa on Friday. (Tom Hanson/Canadian Press)
The federal Liberals plan to bring down the Conservative government in a confidence motion on Monday, saying they have a viable alternative, the Canadian Press reported Friday.
But Harper could still avert the immediate defeat of his minority government, re-elected six weeks ago, through procedural tactics.
According to the Canadian Press, the Liberal motion, which has the approval of the NDP and Bloc Québécois, reads:
"In light of the government's failure to recognize the seriousness of Canada's economic situation and its failure in particular to present any credible plan to stimulate the Canadian economy and to help workers and businesses in hard-pressed sectors such as manufacturing, the automotive industry and forestry, this House has lost confidence in this government and is of the opinion that a viable alternative government can be formed within the present House of Commons."
A source says the opposition parties have agreed that Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion would lead the government for the next few months.
The announcement comes hours after reports that former Liberal prime minister Jean Chrétien and ex-NDP leader Ed Broadbent were talking about a potential coalition between the two parties following widespread disagreement over measures proposed in the minority Conservative government's fiscal update, which were announced Thursday.
More to comeWith files from the Canadian Press