NDP to vote against throne speech, forcing Liberals to find support elsewhere

Interim NDP Leader Don Davies says his party will be voting against the government's throne speech, meaning the Liberals will need to get support from another opposition party to survive the confidence vote.

Davies told reporters on Parliament Hill on Wednesday that the throne speech doesn't emphasize some key priorities that the NDP want included, such as health care and employment benefits.

"It's a clear message that this throne speech is not a worker-centred throne speech and it does not deliver the priorities that we heard from millions of Canadians across this country," Davies said.

"We can't support a speech that so badly misses the mark in terms of the economic and social policies people need in this country."

A government's throne speech is traditionally a confidence vote, meaning if it doesn't pass the government could fall and Canadians could potentially be facing another election this year.

The NDP was reduced to seven seats in April's election. But with the Liberals just a few seats short of a majority, the party still has some sway in this Parliament.

The throne speech vote will take place on Wednesday. Without the NDP, the Liberals will need backing from either the Conservatives or the Bloc Québécois for it to pass.

The Conservatives have said they would back the Liberals in certain circumstances but haven't said whether they would be supporting the throne speech. A spokesperson for the Bloc told CBC News on Wednesday that the party hasn't made a decision on how it will vote.

Wednesday's vote comes after the Liberals lost a vote to amend the throne speech earlier this week.

Opposition MPs outvoted the Liberals 166 to 164 on Monday night to include the amendment which calls on the government to table an economic update before Parliament breaks for the summer.

The amendment was put forward by the Conservatives and included language inserted by the Bloc and NDP. All three opposition parties voted to support it.

The NDP, which had a supply-and-confidence agreement with the previous Liberal government, has said it will not enter a formal arrangement to support Prime Minister Mark Carney's government.