Canada's Martin Faces Possible Defeat in January

Canada's Martin Faces Possible Defeat in January (Update5)

Listen Nov. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin, whose popularity has slumped over a corruption scandal in Quebec, may be toppled as opposition parties join to oust his minority government and force elections in February. New Democratic Party Leader Jack Layton, who supported Martin's Liberal Party government until this week, said he will introduce a motion Nov. 24 to remove the government in January and force a vote the following month. Canada's two other opposition parties said they would review the plan. ``We cannot express confidence in this government's inaction on things that matter, nor can we condone its record,'' Layton told reporters today in Vancouver. Martin, 67, may become the first prime minister to be ousted by legislators in 26 years. Opposition parties, which control the House of Commons, are taking advantage of declining support for the Liberals after a public inquiry last week found the party received kickbacks in exchange for advertising contracts. Layton will meet Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper, who runs the country's largest opposition party, and Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe later this week to discuss details of the plan. Both have said they're in favor of ousting Martin. Under Canadian parliamentary tradition, a government would have to step down immediately after losing a vote of ``no- confidence.'' Layton's proposal would seek to leave the government in power to avoid an election during the Christmas holidays, meaning the plan may have to be reworked, Duceppe and Harper told reporters today. The opposition parties wouldn't be able to delay a vote following a motion of confidence, Liberal Party Deputy House Leader Mauril Belanger said on CTV today. Leader Martin took over from former Prime Minister Jean Chretien in December 2003, and led the Liberal Party in the last federal vote in June 2004. The prime minister has promised to call an election for March or April, after the release of the final report on the Quebec spending scandal. The scandal undermined Martin's election campaign last year, ending his party's 11-year majority rule. Polls show an election today would probably produce a similar outcome, with a minority Liberal government. The Liberal Party has 35 percent support of voters, compared with 28 percent for the Conservative Party and 20 percent for the New Democrats, according to a poll by the Strategic Counsel published this week in the Globe and Mail. Another poll released Nov. 5 had the Conservatives in front by three percentage points. Parties typically need to win more than 40 percent of the vote to gain majorities in parliament. Promises Without a majority in the House of Commons, Martin has been unable to deliver on promises such as decriminalizing marijuana or releasing guidelines allowing the country's five largest banks to merge. His government has also been the most lavish in two decades as the Liberals sought to increase their popularity by boosting spending on hospitals, childcare and cities, leading to a 15 percent rise in program expenses last year. More spending increases may be on the way ahead of elections, said Gilles Soucy, chief economist of Mouvement Desjardins. Finance Minister Ralph Goodale will announce on Monday an update of this year's budget, which is expected to include new tax and spending measures funded by an unanticipated windfall from oil tax revenue. Canada's budget surplus is forecast to be as much as C$12.4 billion ($10.5 billion) this year, triple the government's earlier estimate, according to figures commissioned by parliament's finance committee released Oct. 24. ``The government may use this money for political issues,'' Soucy said before Layton's announcement. ``We know we're going toward an election.''