A Facebook post by Norway's justice minister Sylvi Listhaug could lead to the collapse of the country's minority government

Norway's Christian Democrats on Monday refused to back a rightwing justice minister who had triggered outrage with a shocking Facebook post, a move that could end up toppling the minority government.

The refusal means a majority in parliament are in favour of a vote of no-confidence to be held on Tuesday against Justice Minister Sylvi Listhaug of the anti-immigration Progress Party, a member of the three-party centre-right coalition.

Listhaug shocked the nation when she accused the opposition Labour Party, which was targeted by rightwing extremist Anders Behring Breivik in a 2011 massacre, of favouring the rights of terrorists over national security.

The stakes are high -- Prime Minister Erna Solberg's entire government hangs in the balance. Solberg has said that if there is a majority against Listhaug, she will call a vote of confidence in the entire government.

"The national committee of the Christian Democrats has indicated that it does not have confidence in Listhaug," party leader Knut Arild Hareide said after the Christian Democrats concluded their meeting.

"It therefore asks Erna Solberg to take measures to avoid the vote of no-confidence tomorrow," he added.

He was referring to the possibility of moving Listhaug to another cabinet post, an option that Solberg has excluded so far, according to media reports.

Listhaug's resignation is largely seen as unlikely, but other possibilities do exist. The Christian Democrats could decide to ultimately vote against the no-confidence motion, after having pushed the question to the limit to get Listhaug to resign.

If the government were to fall, Norway would hold new elections, Either Solberg or the head of the opposition would simply be asked to form a new government.

- Facebook post -

The Christian Democrats generally support the centre-right government, but the small party has had issues with Listhaug in the past.

Listhaug is controversial but enjoys support from her party's populist wing.

In a Facebook post on March 9 which contained a photo of al-Shabaab militants, she accused Labour of considering that "the rights of terrorists are more important than the security of the nation".

She was criticising Labour's opposition to a proposal to strip the citizenship of Norwegians who pose a threat to the nation's vital interests, without a court order.

Labour members were the main victims of the bloodiest attacks on Norwegian soil since WWII.

On July 22, 2011, Breivik, who once was a member of the Progress Party, killed 77 people in twin attacks: one targeting then Labour prime minister Jens Stoltenberg's office in Oslo and another against a Labour youth camp on the island of Utoya.

Faced with strong criticism, notably by survivors of the attacks, Listhaug finally removed the post five days after it was published, citing rights issues prohibiting the use of the al-Shabaab photo.

On Thursday, she apologised to parliament, a move that did not satisfy the opposition.