Canadian PM asks governor to dissolve parliament, calls for election

Ottawa, Aug 3: Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper urged Governor General David Johnston to dissolve parliament and conduct general election in October.

PM Harper's Conservative Party has been in office since 2006 but according to analysts this time it would be difficult for him to form a majority government, reported BBC.

"I feel very strongly that those campaigns need to be conducted under the rules of the law. The money come from the parties themselves, not from government resources, parliamentary resources or taxpayer resources," Harper said answering a question as to why he launched the campaign so far in advance of the fixed election date, which is the longest and most costly in the country's political history.

"In terms of the fact that we're a better organised political party, and better supported by Canadians -- those advantages exist whether we call this campaign or not," he said.

If Harper witnesses victory in the election, he would be the first prime minister since Sir Wilfrid Laurier in 1908 to win four consecutive elections.

PM Harper said the election would be about "leadership on the big issues that affect us all, our economy and our nation's security".

The 11-week election campaign will be one of the longest in Canadian history.

The main parties opposing Conservatives are the Liberals, led by Justin Trudeau, and the left-wing New Democratic Party (NDP) under Tom Mulcair.

OneIndia News (with inputs from agecny)