In the simplest answer, no there doesn't have to be an election just because a minority government loses a vote of confidence..
At least, not in the British parliamentary tradition which Canada follows there doesn't.
If Stephen Harper's personal ambition gets the better of him very soon, he may think he is forcing an election to win a majority government, but he might not be. I say personal ambition by the way because Canadians do say two things in every single poll taken recently: one - they think Paul Martin is a better PM than Harper and two - they don't want an election by a huge margin.
In a minority parliament, indeed in any parliament, the Governor General may ask the leader of any party in the House to see if he or she can find its confidence. By custom, next in line after Martin would Harper.
So If the government is defeated soon on a budget bill or confidence motion, young Mr. Harper may find himself on the way to Rideau Hall with the offer he wants: form a government.
What to do?
Well according CTV this morning, Harper things that idea is a bit unlikely. "Asked about this prospect Friday, Harper sounded dubious. "That would be feasible only under extraordinary circumstances," he told reporters.
That scenario, says [CTV Ottawa bureau chief Robert] Fife, is "not very likely given the poll numbers -- I think the answer would be a resounding no."
The poll numbers have nothing to do with it, Bob. And if they did, they would support a Harper minority as easily as anything else. The public may wish for a changed of administration without going through the expense of an election. In the current setting they can have that. Have it, that is, if Mr. Harper and his Conservatives are actually democratic enough to follow the will of the people.
See that's the underlying thing about Stephen Harper, the academic/intellectual cum political leader. He isn't really a democrat. He's an elitist. When he says that he has to prop up this government until the people want something else, what he means is this: I'll stay here until you people get the point that I want to be PM with a majority government. He means he'll hang around until the rest of us agree with his opinion. In the meantime, he and the media will bombard everyone with speculation about the imminent fall of the government and the election that must follow.
Problem is, both the media and Harper have it dead wrong.
Martin and the Liberals may get defeated in the House.
But that doesn't mean an automatic election.
Nope.
Maybe the experience of being a minority PM would help Harper's perspective. Canadians have already given him his marching orders and they keep doing it in opinion polls: stop shagging around Steve and learn to play well with others.
We don't really care that you want a majority government. You're supposed to be in Ottawa passing legislation rather than in Cambridge learning how to press shirts in some dorky campaign photo-op.
Democracy isn't real about what you want, Steve.
It's about what the voters want.
and, as Preston Manning reminded you once, that's because it's our money.
Democracy, like payback, can be a mother, Steve.
Suck it up and get down to work.
Oh yeah:
Easy on the starch.