‘Right now, we don’t have the votes’ to pass federal budget, says Liberal House leader

27-Oct-2025

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Liberal House leader Steven MacKinnon says the government does not have enough votes at the moment to pass the upcoming federal budget — and he’s pressing opposition parties to consider whether they want another election.

“As we speak right now, we don’t have the votes,” MacKinnon said in an interview on Rosemary Barton Live airing Sunday morning. He acknowledged Canada has a minority government but argued the Liberals have a mandate to move “this country forward economically.”

The Liberal government will need the co-operation of at least one other party in order to pass the budget, which is being tabled on Nov. 4. Because the budget is a confidence vote, Canadians could be facing another election if it doesn’t pass.

“The opposition parties will have to determine whether the differences between us are sufficiently large to cause the Canadians to go to the polls,” MacKinnon told host Rosemary Barton. “We would be reluctant to go to the polls.”