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How, one wonders, could the Liberals possibly vote against such a heartfelt paean to those tireless pennycounters toiling in the bowels of the finance department — let alone an explicit expression of confidence in the deputy minister?

Yet if they support it, they will implicitly conceding a point that the Conservatives have been relentlessly attempting to drive home in recent days: namely, that when their party handed over the keys to the coffers, there was a billion dollar surplus that the new occupants seem distinctly reluctant to acknowledge.

That particular squabble has been raging in Question Period in recent days, with the Conservatives citing a December 2015 report from the department that they claim backs up their case. The Liberals, however, have consistently maintained that it was the outgoing government that left the country in the red.

We should find out whether the Tories will call that bluff later today, or choose to let the government off comparatively easy by choosing one of the other motions on notice for today, which includes an impassioned defence of the (likely soon to be mothballed) Office of Religious Freedom, as well an evergreen plea for an end to internal trade barriers.

But even if they don’t use it tomorrow, it will live forever on the Order Paper, a shining example of the genre, and an inspiration for opposition strategists.