New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton during question period. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA - The NDP is trying again to bring down the Conservative government and force an election over the faltering economy.
The party is introducing a confidence motion condemning the minority government's "unbalanced economic agenda." The motion accuses the Tories of fostering a growing income gap that is leaving middle-income Canadians behind.
And it slams the government for failing to reform employment insurance to ensure those who lose their jobs are protected and retrained.
The motion is expected to be voted on Monday.
Although Liberals are equally critical of Conservative economic management, leader Stephane Dion says they won't defeat Prime Minister Stephen Harper over the issue.
"We'll not trigger an election through an NDP motion," he said.
Liberals have repeatedly dodged other confidence votes having concluded it's wiser to wait until at least the fall to force an election.
They're likely to dodge another possible confidence vote - over a bill that would empower the government to deny tax credits to Canadian films deemed overly violent or pornographic - which is being studied by a Senate committee.
The committee is not expected to wrap up hearing from witnesses until just before Parliament breaks for the summer at the end of June. The bill won't be put to a vote in the Liberal-dominated Senate until the fall.
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Article online since May 7th 2008, 0:00
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