Poilievre Says Some Liberal MPs in Favour of Non-Confidence Motion Against Government

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre rises during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on Oct. 9, 2024. The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says some Liberal MPs have told Tories they would vote in favour of a non-confidence motion against the government.

Speaking to reporters on Oct. 24, Poilievre said he had spoken with “numerous Liberal MPs” who are worried the Liberal government’s carbon tax policy will cost them their seats, and that they want to vote against that plan.

“Some of them might even be willing to vote non-confidence in Justin Trudeau if that issue comes up again,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Trudeau was asked at a press conference about some members of his caucus asking him to step down, and about a request to make a decision on that by Oct. 28, which was reportedly written in a letter handed to him in a caucus meeting on Oct. 23. Trudeau told reporters he is staying on as leader.

One of the Liberal MPs who has said he has signed that letter, Ken McDonald, was asked by reporters outside Parliament on Oct. 23 if he would consider voting in favour of an opposition confidence motion. “That’s something I would have to consider, but right now it’s not something I would do,” he said.

McDonald has previously voted against his own government on the Bloc’s bill on Old Age Security Pensions and on the federal carbon tax.

The Liberals have been trailing the Conservatives in the polls for over a year, with the latest Nanos Research poll from Oct. 15 showing the Liberals holding support among 23 percent of Canadians, compared with the Tories at 39 percent, and the NDP at 21 percent. The Liberals have also lost recent byelections in ridings that were previously the party’s strongholds.

Non-Confidence Motions

The Liberal government has faced two unsuccessful confidence votes since the House of Commons returned in September. In both cases, the Conservative motion failed after the Liberals, Bloc Québécois, and New Democrats voted against them.

The cited Oct. 28 deadline reportedly given to Trudeau by some Liberal MPs is also one day before a deadline the Bloc Québécois gave the Liberal government to support two private members’ bills.

Back in late September, Bloc Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet announced that the Liberals will need to support two Bloc private members’ bills before Oct. 29 or the party would begin talks with other parties to bring down the government. Bill C-319 would increase Old Age Security pensions by 10 percent for seniors aged 65 to 74, while Bill C-282 would make changing the supply management system out of bounds for the government in international trade negotiations.

The New Democrats have so far not shown any indication that they would be voting against the government, saying they will be deciding on a case-by-case basis.

Theoretically, if enough disgruntled Liberal MPs join the Conservatives and the Bloc to vote against the government on a confidence vote, they may be able to add enough numbers to the Tories’ 119 seats and the Bloc’s 33 seats to have more votes than the Liberals and any support they may be able to muster from other parties.