Government will vote against Bloc's pension motion, Liberal House leader says

Government House leader Karina Gould says the Liberal government will today vote against a key Bloc Québécois motion that the opposition party has presented as a condition of its support in future confidence votes.

Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet put forward a motion Tuesday calling on the government to support Bill C-319, a Bloc private member's bill that would hike Old Age Security (OAS) payouts for seniors between the ages of 65 and 74 by 10 per cent.

For the Bloc's pension legislation to become law, the Liberal government would have to grant a «royal recommendation» because a private member's bill can't force Ottawa to spend more money without cabinet approval.

Gould said Wednesday the Liberal cabinet won't support the Bloc's motion because it was attempting to push the government to grant that royal recommendation.

«It is not appropriate for an opposition day motion to set the precedent of getting a royal recommendation,» Gould told reporters on Parliament Hill.

Steve MacKinnon, the minister of labour and seniors, indicated the motion would be a free vote for Liberal backbenchers.

«We have very, very strict criteria for something that is mandatory for all government MPs to support. It's not in this category,» he told reporters in French.

Blanchet has warned the government that if it does not push through the Bloc's pension legislation by the end of this month, the party will start negotiating with other opposition parties to trigger an early election.

Voting against the motion doesn't necessarily mean the government won't support the pension legislation. Gould said she is in constant communication with the other parties' House leaders.

But Blanchet has indicated there is no room for compromise on his party's proposal.

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