Liberal members of Parliament abstained from voting on the speech from the throne Wednesday night, ensuring its passage and staving off the prospect of an immediate election.

Conservative MPs rose in the House of Commons in support of the speech, the Bloc Québécois and NDP members stood in opposition, while Liberal MPs all remained seated. The motion passed by a vote of 126 to 79.

The Conservative minority government had designated the vote a confidence motion, meaning its defeat would have triggered an election.

Two attempts to change the speech — an amendment by the Liberals and a sub-amendment by the Bloc — have been voted down in the House of Commons.

Both the Bloc and the NDP had already said they will vote against it. But Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion said last week that if the Liberal amendment did not pass, his MPs would abstain, adding that Canadians do not want an election.

The throne speech lays out the Conservative party's agenda for the parliamentary session. It includes promises for major tax cuts, a vote to extend the Afghan mission until at least 2011 and new crime legislation.

It also reiterates the Tories' position that Canada cannot meet the greenhouse gas targets of the Kyoto Protocol.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper has also said if the throne speech passes, he will expect support for the main elements of the speech when they come forward as legislation. Otherwise, he will then consider making those items matters of confidence on which the government could fall.

NDP Leader Jack Layton blasted Dion over his refusal to vote against the throne speech, saying the move effectively gives Harper majority government status.

He accused the Liberals of failing in their duties as Her Majesty's official Opposition merely to avoid going to the polls.

With files from the Canadian Press