Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government survives budget vote

It was the slimmest of wins – 170 to 168 – for Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberals and it may have failed if a Conservative lawmaker had not abandoned his party ahead of the vote and “crossed the floor” to join the Liberals.

There are 343 seats in Parliament, and debate raged back and forth up to the Monday vote.

It was a touch-and-go vote to get the necessary majority to pass the budget. Two members of the New Democratic Party and two Conservatives abstained from voting.

In dramatic fashion, Green Party leader Elizabeth May, who had been sitting on the fence, met with Carney on Monday morning and she was promised some environment measures. It was enough for May, who said she would now vote in favor of the budget – and did.

The final vote took only about 20 minutes.

Don Davies, interim leader of the New Democratic Party, said although the budget did not meet the needs of Canadians, it was right to pass it.

The budget “failed to meet the moment,” Davies said, but “Canadians did not want an election only six months after the last one.”

The Conservative Party voted against it because, said leader Pierre Poilievre, it would balloon the country’s deficit.