Canada's Conservatives survive budget vote

OTTAWA, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Canada's embattled minority Conservative government survived a vote on a recessionary, deficit-laden budget Tuesday night in Ottawa by a 211-91 vote.

No total value on the package was available, as the parliamentary vote was only on a confidence measure for Prime Minister's Stephen Harper's government to present the full implementation package to Parliament on Thursday, The National Post said.

However, in light of global economic downturns, the budget forecasts a federal deficit of $33.7 billion for the 2009-10 fiscal year and $29.8 billion the following year, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said.

Liberal opposition leader Michael Ignatieff outraged the two other opposition parties last month by opting not to form a coalition to bring the Conservatives down, and instead amended the bill to require three mandatory accountability reports to Parliament during the year, saying he had put the Conservative government "on probation."

Since last October's federal election that saw Harper's party returned to a second minority term, Parliament has 143 Conservatives, 77 Liberals, 49 separatist Bloc Quebecois members, 37 socialist New Democratic Party seats and two independents.