Liberals support government on the budget, despite critics

The Liberals, through their leader Michael Ignatieff, have informed Parliament yesterday that they will support the Conservative budget, minus an amendment requiring that the government present updates to the House regarding their budget promises to verify funding actually goes out the door.

The Conservatives have told the House, through the Government House Leader Jay Hill, that they feel this amendment is acceptable, and in fact is an accountability measure that similar the ones they would have taken in either case.

"It does nothing that we don't normally do, which is report back to Parliament upon the progress that we intend to make in ad-dressing the economic situation that faces our nation," government House leader Jay Hill told reporters.

The Calgary Herald elaborates on that point:

“…In any case, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has already promised regular updates: on Page 72 of the budget document, the government commits itself to providing "an initial report on progress this summer, and responsible ministers will provide an update to Parliament the first week following the summer recess. The government will reassess and, if necessary, reallocate funding in the 2009 Economic and Fiscal Update.”

The Conservatives are, so far, satisfied with the Liberal position. Jay Hill is quoted in Sun Media as being “very pleased” with their support. "We look forward to working co-operatively with them," Hill also said.

Ignatieff says that these reports to Parliament will hold the Conservatives “on probation” and on a “very tight leash,” vowing to defeat the government after the presentation of any of these reports, which will be considered confidence motions, if the Government’s response is deemed inadequate.

However, Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe argued outside the Commons following Ignatieff’s press conference yesterday that the Liberals would likely avoid bringing the Conservatives down at these times, by saying that Canadians need an election “like a hole in the head,” in reference to an earlier statement by Ignatieff.

Many have criticized Ignatieff and the Liberals for not having had the guts to seek more in their amendment, for example the softening of the eligibility rules for those seeking Employment Insurance. NDP leader Jack Layton openly criticized Ignatieff, saying the coalition was now between Harper and Ignatieff. Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe also said that the coalition, agreed upon in December, was formally dead. A humorous “obituary” is even featured in the Toronto Star.

The Star has officially rallied with Ignatieff’s position, in an editorial published today. Though their position was slightly nuanced, saying that the Liberals could have tried pushing for more substantial changes to the budget, their choice was the best to hold off rushing to power by defeating the Conservatives on this budget.

“Yes, the budget fell short of the accord's demands in other areas, including the easing of eligibility requirements for employment insurance (EI) and an early learning and child care program. So it was less than perfect. It was, instead, a compromise – the basis on which minority parliaments are supposed to work.

“Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff is right, therefore, not to rush to the barricades with the other two opposition parties to defeat this budget and Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government with it. That would mean either putting the coalition in office (which, unfortunately, many parts of the country would see as illegitimate) or forcing yet another election (which would be the fourth in five years).”

Yet, the Star also featured conflicting views on the subject with one article saying that Ignatieff and the Liberals had missed a chance to help the country. Thomas Walkom writes:

…He has missed a chance to force Stephen Harper's government to markedly improve Tuesday's budget – to plug gaping holes in its approach to recession and
eliminate small, but loathsome ideological leftovers slipped into its back pages.

[…]

Instead, the Liberals could have insisted on substantive conditions. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has signalled that he's open to reasonable amendments. His only proviso is that they not contradict the budget's overall thrust.

[…]

Having listed the budget's flaws, he said his party would support it anyway.

"We are in the opposition," he explained. "We are not the government. It is the responsibility of the government to govern."

[…]

Had Ignatieff's Liberals cared enough, they almost certainly could have forced the government to back down here. But clearly they did not.

Instead, they took what, in more normal times, would be the standard opposition approach: Don't take responsibility; avoid being identified with policies that might not work; focus on the next election.

What Ignatieff forgets is that these are not normal times."

Then again, Ignatieff keeps playing the spin to his advantage, hoping Canadians will forget his actions leading up to the budget. Despite his initial attitude during pre-budgetary consultations with the Prime Minister, where he explained it was up to the government to come up with a plan, this despite the multiple attempts by the government to seek suggestions from the opposition, Ignatieff argues today that it is thanks to them that some of the good measures in the budget have been brought forward.

The Calgary Herald writes:

“…When Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff comments on the budget that anything bad belongs to the Conservatives, anything good is there because of the opposition and that the Liberals have the government "on probation"--well, what else would one expect him to say?”

Ignatieff is building himself quite a "legacy"…