OTTAWA–MPs have voted to put a stop to the practice of mailing taxpayer-funded political flyers to voters outside their own ridings.

In a surprisingly close result Tuesday, MPs passed a Liberal motion to scrap the so-called 10-percenters by a vote of 140-137.

New Democrats, who had argued in favour of retaining the right to communicate with voters all across the country, ended up supporting the motion, which included several other proposals aimed at saving the government more than $1 billion annually.

The Bloc Québécois also supported it while Conservatives, who've made the most use of the mailouts, were opposed.

The controversial 10-percenters – so named because MPs can send one-page flyers to distant voters in numbers equal to 10 per cent of the electors in their own ridings – are estimated to cost up to $10 million each year.

Unlike other opposition motions that the government can ignore, Liberals maintain Tuesday's motion is binding. It was worded as a directive to the Speaker of the House of Commons and the board of internal economy, which set the rules for MPs' mailing privileges.

The flyers have been the source of considerable tension among the various parties over the last couple of years. They've been used increasingly to launch vicious partisan attacks against political opponents.