Conservatives would govern the same with majority: Harper |
| Wednesday, April 6, 2011 - 10:45:14 AM By Andrew Mayeda |
| April 4, 2011 WELLAND, Ont. - The Conservatives would govern the same way with a majority government as they have with a minority, avoiding socially conservative moves such as cracking down on abortions, Stephen Harper said Monday. Harper announced a re-elected Conservative government would re-introduce legislation to scrap the long-gun registry. The Conservatives have tried in vain several times to push through government legislation to that effect. Last fall, the House of Commons narrowly defeated a private-member's bill put forward by Conservative MP Candice Hoeppner to kill the registry. Other Conservative backbenchers have introduced legislation on issues popular with the socially conservative wing of the party. Manitoba MP Rod Bruinooge tabled a bill, for example, that would have changed the Criminal Code to make it illegal to coerce a woman to have an abortion. Mr. Harper did not support the bill, and he "strongly recommended" that his caucus do the same. But abortion advocates say the Conservatives have been floating such bills as trial balloons for how far they could go if they win a majority. Mr. Harper shot down that notion Monday, saying he has "no intention of opening up" issues such as abortion if the Conservatives secure a majority. "Our agenda is the same agenda with a majority government or a minority government," he told reporters here after being asked what he would do differently with a majority. The Conservatives have so far rolled out a cautious platform based largely on the budget tabled by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty last month. The budget was rejected by all three opposition parties. The budget offers a few small tax breaks for certain demographic groups, but largely focuses on eliminating the deficit by 2015-6. "We will govern on the platform that we are elected on, and as I've said before, if the population of Canada elects a minority, I will gladly accept that," Mr. Harper said. "They've done that twice, and it's a great honour. We are Conservatives. ... We don't have an entitlement to government." |
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