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Implications of the Vote for the Liberal GovernmentThe House of Commons vote showed the continuing rift within the Liberal Party. While the vote did not formally show non-confidence in Chretien’s government, it revealed that a large section of Liberal Party members are willing to publicly defy the Prime Minister's wishes. This rift falls along two lines:
Paul Martin versus the Prime MinisterThis first appeared in public last June, when Prime Minister Jean Chretien made a major cabinet change, replacing Paul Martin as minister of finance. Paul Martin had served as minister of finance since Chretien’s Liberals came to power in 1993. Since Martin’s departure as Minister of Finance, his supporters within the Liberal Party have been pushing for Prime Minister Chretien's resignation and his replacement with Paul Martin. While the Prime Minister has publicly stated that he will step down in February 2004, Martin’s supporters have continued to rebel against Chretien’s leadership. The vote on November 5th was another public example of this rebellion. Paul Martin had previously stated that he supported parliamentary reform. The majority of Liberals that voted in favour of the motion were Martin supporters. This support for the motion contradicted the Prime Minister's explicit wishes to vote against the motion. Liberal Backbenchers and the PMOThe vote also exposed another rift within the Liberal Party, between Liberal backbenchers and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). By supporting the motion for secret ballot elections, Liberal backbenchers serving on committees gained some freedom from the PMO. They can now vote for the committee chair or vice-chair of their choice, with much less fear of party discipline and retribution from the PMO. Further, they may be elected to such positions now, even if it is against the Prime Minister's will. The Latest Stories on
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