MONTREAL—Federal party leaders took part in the French-language debate in Montreal on April 16, and while Canada–U.S. relations was a main topic, they were asked to present to voters their two top pitches unrelated to U.S. President Donald Trump.
Trump has weighed heavily on the election due to his tariffs and declarations about making Canada the 51st U.S. state, and parties have reacted by promising measures to reinforce Canada’s sovereignty and make the economy more resilient.
The leaders—Liberals’ Mark Carney, Conservatives’ Pierre Poilievre, NDP’s Jagmeet Singh, and the Bloc Québécois’ Yves-Francois Blanchet—were asked what two policies they are proposing which would concretely change the lives of Canadians but have nothing to do with the United States.On the campaign trail, Carney has made a number of promises around housing, such as getting the federal government into home building and cutting municipal development charges to increase the housing stock. On cultural institutions, Carney has also pledged to increase CBC/Radio-Canada’s funding by an initial $150 million.
Poilievre stayed on one of his key messages to respond to the moderator’s question. He mentioned the high cost of living and said the “promise of an affordable life has been broken.”
Poilievre said he pledges to cut taxes by 15 percent so that work can be rewarding. He also said he would remove the GST on the sale new homes and incentivize municipalities to cut taxes.
Poilievre’s tax cut promise would apply to the lowest bracket, and the plan to remove the GST would apply to homes up to $1.3 million. Carney has also made a similar pledge on new homes up to $1 million. The Liberal leader also promised a slightly lower tax cut of 1 percentage point on the lowest bracket.
Blanchet, the only native-French speaker among the leaders, said his two main items relate to issues he’s been advancing before Trump came to power.
He said Quebec has the right to have a different economy which is “open to the world” and based on its own natural resources and its emphasis on a green economy. He also said Quebec has the right to be different when it comes to language, culture, and values.
Blanchet had a unique chance to make his mark during the debate, with his party lagging the Liberals in the polls in the province. The Bloc leader declined to comment on the polls in a post-debate scrum with reporters.
Singh said the two elements he wants to focus on to change the lives of Canadians is expanding and improving pharmacare and dental care. He said Canadians and Quebecers want to “take care of each other” and this is represented by Canada’s health system.
The two programs were the fruit of the NPD’s supply-and-confidence agreement with the minority Liberals, which kept them in power in exchange for advancing NDP priorities.
