HALIFAX - After three years in power, Nova Scotia's sometimes gaffe-prone minority government fell on Monday, setting the stage for an early June election call.
Premier Rodney MacDonald says he will meet with Lt.-Gov. Mayann Francis on Tuesday to discuss the fate of his government, but he expects an election to be held on June 9.
The Conservative government lost a vote Monday on a bill that would have allowed it to miss legally required debt payments, which it considered a matter of confidence.
The government's defeat was widely expected sometime this week and it came as no surprise to MacDonald.
"We are in a minority government, we've lasted upwards of three years," he said. "I'm not shocked at all because of what the opposition have been saying."
The government had introduced its 2009-10 budget earlier Monday, although it was largely a political exercise as the document will die with an election call. The $8.6 billion budget included spending on infrastructure to create jobs, and forecast a razor thin surplus of $4 million.
The government wanted to change the Provincial Finance Act to allow it to spend a surplus it had in the 2008-09 fiscal year on programs and services, rather than on the provincial debt. The amendment would have meant missing a debt payment in 2009-10 as well.
NDP Leader Darrell Dexter and Stephen McNeil of the Liberals refused to support the amendment to the finance act. They argued MacDonald was simply trying to avoid budget deficits during the recession.
Dexter went further in the house, telling the Conservatives he was in the odd position of standing up for a bill that former Tory premier John Hamm had passed to tackle the province's crippling debt.
"This bill (to change the finance act) was about whether or not we sat back and allow $1.4 billion in new debt to be foisted on the backs of future generations of Nova Scotians," Dexter said.
Voters in Nova Scotia last went to the polls shortly after MacDonald became leader in 2006, when the Conservatives won a minority government, the party's second straight minority.
This election could be a classic contest of hope versus fear as the Conservatives have already run ads demonizing the Opposition NDP as an unproven alternative.
It was a theme that MacDonald jumped on when he emerged from the legislature.
"We're about to have an election campaign that deals directly with the economy, it is the top issue at the present time," he said.
"People are going to have a choice between a government that has a plan for the economy and an Opposition in the NDP who simply don't have a plan and are simply too risky with all the spending promises they have put forward."
The Conservatives have 21 seats in the 52-seat legislature. The NDP has 20 and the Liberals nine. One seat is held by an Independent and one seat is vacant.
Dexter said it's time for a judgment on the Tories.
"This election will be an opportunity for people to decide whether or not what they want is another four years of the MacDonald government," said Dexter.
MacDonald's government has been plagued by a series of scandals, most notably the 2007 resignation of cabinet minister Ernie Fage after a car crash that led to him being convicted of leaving the scene of an accident. Fage remains in the house as an Independent and is seeking re-election.
Other ministers came under fire last year, including Education Minister Judy Streatch, whose son crashed her government vehicle in May as he made a trip to get some ice cream. Taxpayers were originally on the hook for damages to the vehicle, which was eventually written off, until Streatch agreed to cover the costs.
Energy Minister Barry Barnet later lost responsibility for health promotion after he was criticized for approving the $250,000 purchase of 66 kid-sized ATVs in what was seen as a bid to win support in rural Nova Scotia. MacDonald also criticized Barnet for the move, saying he didn't know about the widely unpopular decision to buy the machines.
McNeil, who has led the third party for just over two years, is a wild card in the election as he is untested in a provincewide campaign.
He placed the blame for the election on the Tories, arguing they orchestrated their defeat by bringing in a bill his party could not support.
"They could have met their obligations and kept a balanced budget going forward, but that wouldn't have fit in their political needs, and their political need was to cause an election and that's what they've got today," McNeil said.
McNeil's campaign will focus on the economy. In particular, the former appliance repairman will promote the creation of more small businesses in the province by pledging business tax cuts and microcredit loans for small enterprises.
Dexter was already countering what he expects to be a negative campaign from the Tories, saying his party is ready to govern. If the NDP wins, it would be a first in Atlantic Canada.
"We have 128 years of collective experience in the House of Assembly," he told reporters.
"My caucus is made up of individuals who are leaders in education, in law, in business and in social policy. We are out to present what we think is an alternative to the way business has been conducted over the last 10 years."
