In a move designed to send Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson "a message," MPs have voted against restoring her full budget.

Three Opposition parties and a handful of Liberals voted late Thursday against the motion by Treasury Board President Reg Alcock to put more than $400,000 back into Clarkson's budget.

The money in question amounts to roughly one per cent of Clarkson's $41-million budget. The money had been removed by the government operations committee to demonstrate concern over spending at Rideau Hall.

The motion was defeated as Conservative members sang "God Save the Queen."

The vote on Clarkson's budget was meant "to send the message that an era of wretched excess at rideau hall is over," NDP MP Pat Martin said Friday.

Defence Minister Bill Graham, however, said keeping the cuts in place was the wrong thing to do.

"It is vicious and it is a complete desire to just cause trouble without any respect," Graham told Parliament.

"It would affect the ability of the representative of the Crown, the representative of the Canadian people to do her job for the rest of the year."

Clarkson's aides suggested the cuts may mean that their office will have to postpone the next Order of Canada ceremony and cancel children's activities at Rideau Hall during Ottawa's Winterlude festival.

Conservative MP Peter MacKay call that a bluff to win sympathy.

"Look, if they have to cut children's programs, I'd suggest they maybe have to serve less caviar at the next cocktail party."

Not a Confidence Vote

This was one of the first times that Opposition parties in the House have voted against the Liberal government, which was left with a minority after last June's federal election.

MPs also voted against returning more than $100,000 removed from the Privy Council budget that had been used to help the Liberals cope with the aftermath of the sponsorship scandal.

This was not a vote of confidence, which could have brought down the government.

However, another motion that was a vote of confidence -- on the main estimates which cover the bulk of government spending -- passed with the support of the Bloc and the NDP.

Clarkson's five-year term as Governor General comes to an end next fall.

Though she has won respect for raising the profile of her ceremonial position over the last five years, she has also courted controversy for big increases in the Rideau Hall budget.

Her spending practices led to a parliamentary committee issuing a report last spring calling for greater oversight of expenditures.