Liberal Leader Stephane Dion dropped another strong hint his party would be prepared to trigger an election by voting against the forthcoming Conservative budget.
"If the budget is wrong for the country, we'll not support this budget. We'll see the budget and we'll make our decision at that time," he told CTV's Question Period on Sunday.
The budget, along with a government motion on extending the Afghanistan mission and an ultimatum on the government's crime bill, are seen as the three most likely election triggers. However, the NDP and Bloc Quebecois would also have to vote against the government.
Asked if he wanted an election over the Afghanistan mission, Dion said: "I would prefer not. I want this Parliament to work."
He called the minority Tory government's attempt to trigger an election on the crime bill "ridiculous," adding the government wants to "fall at any cost."
A budget vote would come Feb. 26, after the crime bill matter but before the Afghan vote, likely in late March.
Conservative House Leader Peter Van Loan told Question Period that the government was trying "advance our priority agenda items.
"We need to see (the crime bill) become law. That's why it's a confidence matter," he said.
The Tories can't just dissolve Parliament because of the government's legislation on fixed election terms. If the government isn't defeated by the opposition in the meantime, the next election isn't scheduled until October 2009.
Attacking on the economy
Liberal House Leader Ralph Goodale told Question Period, "there's only so much you can do to prop up a government that has this death wish."
He suggested the government doesn't like what's coming down the road.
On the economy, the forecasting "doesn't look very pretty, and I don't think the government wants to be exposed ... for having blown the fiscal framework," he said.
The Tories left "the cupboard bare" and have no ability to help Canadian industries, Goodale said.
NDP House Leader Libby Davies told Question Period if the Liberals thought the Tories had done such a bad job with the economy, why did they support the last Tory budget?
Van Loan said the government provided a strong economic stimulus in the fall economic update "that's paying off," noting the lowest unemployment rate in 33 years and a surprise bump in housing starts.
"In terms of having an election on Afghanistan, I don't think anyone wants to," he said.
Pollster Nick Nanos of Nanos Research told CTV.ca that the budget would probably the most politically favourable election trigger for the Liberals. "The upside to picking the budget to fight their battle is the fact that there are jitters out there related to the economy and the Liberals can try to portray the budget as not doing enough to help Canadians."
However, Nanos told Question Period that any election call would carry risks for both Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Dion. His latest poll has the parties statistically tied.
The key issue in an election campaign will likely be leadership and whether Harper should continue on as prime minister.
The Harper Tories appear to be the ones trying to pull the plug, he said. "They are counting on the fact they have such a leadership that that's going to tilt in their favour."
But this time the Tories will have a record to defend, and that will make for a tougher campaign than 2006, he said.
Afghanistan poses risks for the Tories. For example, there could be a spring Taliban offensive during the campaign that would cause Canadian casualties, Nanos said.
While the Liberals haven't had much success in painting the Tories as having a "hidden agenda," that might gain traction if Canadians see "mission creep" occurring in Afghanistan, he said.
Harper has to be definitive in his long-term strategy on Afghanistan to avoid leaving that impression, he said.
