The non-binding motion presented by Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, which calls on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to extend the suspension period of the carbon tax on home heating oil to include all forms of home heating, failed on Monday.

In the afternoon vote, Bloc Québécois and Green Party MPs sided with the Liberal bloc in voting to defeat the Conservative motion, which received unusual support from the New Democratic Party.

In the end, the motion was rejected by a majority of 186 to 135. Trudeau cast his vote "no" by default.

Although the motion would not have forced the federal government to do anything, had Poilievre received support from the Bloc, it could have become a political pressure point by allowing opposition parties to note that a majority of the House wants the Liberals to act.

However, that was not in the cards. As Bloc MPs pointed out, this motion "will have no impact on Quebec" since the federal carbon tax does not apply in that province.

This is because this suspension, in addition to doubling the increase in rural areas for the carbon price rebate at the Canada-wide level, only applies to jurisdictions where the federal carbon tax is in effect: Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Yukon, and Nunavut.

Also, in his remarks before the vote, Bloc leader Yves-François Blanchet said his party "will not act like the New Democratic Party and vote strangely with the Conservatives."

Defending his decision to support the motion this time, New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh – who also voted remotely – told reporters that despite his hesitation, his party voted "yes" to reject the Liberals’ "silly" approach.

Responding to news that he would not get the votes, Poilievre accused the Bloc during question period of wanting to raise taxes, while the Conservatives are pushing for "scrapping the tax" entirely if elected.

The Conservative leader also pointed out that the Quebec-based party has formed its own "coalition" with the government, referring to the supply-and-confidence arrangement that remains in place between the Liberal minority and the New Democratic Party.

Targeting Trudeau’s absence from the House of Commons on Monday, Poilievre criticized the Prime Minister for implementing a pause "for three percent of Canadians in the election where polls are falling and his MPs are rebelling."

Monday’s vote came amid continuing pressure from premiers who feel this affordability-focused relief, unveiled 10 days ago, should apply equally across the country to people using other forms of heating, not just in Atlantic Canada where this relief will mostly be felt.

The federal government has argued that the specific focus on home heating oil is because it is more polluting and much more expensive than energy sources other households use for heating, such as natural gas.