13th June 2004, 10:10 AM
YOu can't just vote no confidence.
When a major bill, such as a buget is defeated then it is considered a vote of no confidence and the Prime Minister will normally call an election.
It wouldn't have mattered if the Reform under Manning and the BQ had voted against Chretien on some issue that would be considered a confidence vote because Chretien's liberals had a majority in Parliment and therefore could not have been defeated in that way.
When a major bill, such as a buget is defeated then it is considered a vote of no confidence and the Prime Minister will normally call an election.
It wouldn't have mattered if the Reform under Manning and the BQ had voted against Chretien on some issue that would be considered a confidence vote because Chretien's liberals had a majority in Parliment and therefore could not have been defeated in that way.