NDP Backs Liberals to Defeat Tory Motion Requesting Budget

A Conservative motion highlighting food affordability and calling for the government to introduce a budget before the summer has failed after the NDP and Liberals voted against it.

A total of 141 Conservatives and 21 Bloc Québécois MPs voted in favour of the motion but 166 Liberal MPs, seven New Democrat MPs, and the lone Green MP voted against it. Two Conservative and two Liberal MPs also paired their votes and cancelled each other out, leading to a total of 162 votes in favour and 174 votes against the motion.

The Tory motion, introduced on June 10, said as food prices continue to climb, Canadian families are projected to pay $800 more for food this year than in 2024. It called on the government to table a “fiscally responsible budget before the House adjourns for the summer that reverses Liberal inflationary policies so Canadians can afford to put food on the table.”

Conservative MP Jasraj Singh Hallan, who serves as his party’s shadow finance minister, criticized the NDP for voting against the motion, saying it would have been the best way to pressure Prime Minister Mark Carney and his Liberal government to table a spring budget and “reverse their inflationary policies.”

“Mark Carney said he’d be judged by what Canadians pay at the checkout,” Hallan said in a social media post. “The NDP are sheltering him from accountability—while grocery prices keep climbing and Canadians keep struggling.”

Interim New Democrat Leader Don Davies said the NDP wants the Liberal government to present a budget to enhance transparency for Canadians, but said his party disagrees with the Conservative suggestion that inflation is solely driven by government spending.

Davies said in a statement on social media that inflation is also caused by price gouging by corporations and supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Misdiagnosing the problem leads to misdiagnosed treatment, spending cuts that hurt people,” he said. “NDP wants a fiscally responsible budget with targeted investments in housing, healthcare, & jobs.”

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said in May that the Liberal government would not deliver a budget when Parliament returns, but would instead table a Fall Economic Statement later in the year. Days later, Carney said the Liberal government would table a budget in the fall.

When asked during question period about the decision not to table a spring budget, Carney noted that his government’s plan includes passing legislation to make a “one Canadian economy” and launch nation-building projects to grow the economy.

The majority of MPs in the House voted in favour of a motion on June 2 asking the Liberal government to table a budget or economic update before the House rises for the summer. A total of 166 MPs from the Conservatives, Bloc Québécois, NDP, and the Green Party voted in favour of the amendment, while 164 Liberals voted against.

The result of the vote is non-binding, meaning the Liberal government is not obligated to table a budget before the summer break. Ottawa recently released its Main Estimates for fiscal 2025-2026, which outline government expenditures. The estimates show a spending increase of 8 percent over the previous year.