June 26 (Reuters) - British Columbia's New Democrats introduced a non-confidence motion in the Western Canadian province's government on Monday, setting the stage for the ruling Liberals to be toppled on Thursday after 16 years in power.
In a response to the June 22 Throne Speech, the government's agenda for the legislative session, John Horgan, the leader of the left-leaning New Democrats (NDP) said the provincial government no longer had the confidence of the house.
Provincial lawmakers are expected to vote on the motion on Thursday, leading to the ouster of Premier Christy Clark's government after her right-of-center Liberal Party lost its majority in a knife-edge election last month.
The NDP and Greens, which together have only one seat more than the Liberals in the legislature, have teamed up to form a government. It will be the first minority government in the province in 65 years and few expect it to last the full four-year term. provincial Liberals are separate to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's federal Liberal Party.
Horgan and Green Party leader Andrew Weaver have accused Clark and the Liberals of trying to cling to power by delaying recalling the legislature and introducing last-minute legislation this week that they say is a ploy to hold up a no-confidence vote.
The political limbo has created uncertainty for business in Canada's third-most populous province, notably for oil and gas projects such as Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) Inc's KMI.N KML.TO Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project, which the NDP and Greens oppose.