Stephen Harper's Conservative government easily passed the second confidence test of its throne speech on Monday.
NDP and Bloc Quebecois MPs joined with the Tories to defeat a Liberal amendment to the speech by a vote of 203-89.
This was the second of three tests for the throne speech, delivered last week by Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean. A Bloc amendment to the speech failed last week after it was voted down. The main throne speech motion will be put to a vote on Wednesday.
If Monday's Liberal amendment was approved by Parliament, it would have amounted to a vote of non-confidence -- the government would have fallen and an election triggered.
But the Liberals -- who appear to be in no hurry to send Canadians to the polls -- crafted the amendment to ensure they would be the only party in support of it.
The amendment states the following:
- Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Tories are to blame for failing to live up to Canada's Kyoto targets;
- The previous Liberal government was on track to meet those targets;
- Canada's combat role in Afghanistan should end in 2009, but the door should be left open for some sort of continued role.
Reports say Liberal Leader Stephane Dion has also ensured the government will survive the next confidence test on Wednesday, when Liberals are expected to abstain when the main throne speech motion is put to a vote.
Last week's sub-amendment proposed by the Bloc was also worded in such a way that none of the other parties could support it.
The throne speech follows on the heels of a string of difficulties faced by the Liberal party. The Grits lost three key byelections in Quebec in September -- one of which was a key Liberal stronghold that went to the NDP's Thomas Mulcair.
Since then, questions have risen over the abilities of Dion, a Quebecer who pledged to help bring the province back into the Liberal fold.
Despite all that, some reports have said Dion considered rejecting the throne speech. But Dion's advisers talked him out of it, the reports say, with the hope that more time would allow the party to rebuild its base.
With files from The Canadian Press
