Opposition leaders are slamming Stephen Harper for giving Canadians advice on the stock market, accusing him of speaking like an economist and not a prime minister.
The Conservative leader said Tuesday that falling stock prices may offer Canadians a good opportunity to invest their money.
"I expect some good buying opportunities may be opening up," Harper told reporters.
His comments came on the same day Toronto's S&P/TSX composite index fell 400.88 points to sit at 9,829.55 -- yet another triple-digit loss over the past two weeks.
"It shows how insensitive and how out of touch he is with ordinary Canadians," Liberal Leader Stephane Dion said in North Bay, Ont.
"I cannot believe he said that. You have Canadians today worrying about or losing the value of their savings, their pensions. And he said that -- so insensitive and out of touch, it's incredible."
NDP Jack Layton also said the remarks were insensitive.
"People are wondering whether they can retire, whether they're going to be able to pay their mortgages, whether they're going to get by. (The comments) just left me shaking my head," he said.
Harper says only his party can steer Canada through any economic troubles.
"Make a choice that will make things better, not a choice that will panic and make things a lot worse," he said Tuesday.
But Harper continues to face criticism from opposition leaders for maintaining that Canada should stay the course when it comes to its economy.
NDP Leader Jack Layton said the Conservatives were taking the same course of inaction taken by Conservative Prime Minister R.B. Bennett before the Great Depression.
"Mr. Bennett said, 'Don't worry about anything,'" Layton said at a campaign stop in Vancouver on Tuesday. "And that's what Mr. Harper is suggesting today. And he's wrong."
The Liberals issued a release on Tuesday that attacked Harper's "do-nothing platform" and contained statements from Dion questioning Harper's leadership.
"Mr. Harper offers nothing to put Canadians' minds at ease," Dion said in the statement.
"After weeks of doing nothing to help Canadians cope with the crisis in global financial markets, Mr. Harper is promising more of the same with the release of his platform. Do we really want more of this?"
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May also released a statement critical of Harper, admonishing the Conservative leader for releasing his election platform after advance polls had closed.
"It is beyond me why Mr. Harper would wait until the campaign is practically finished before putting his policies forward for the public to scrutinize," May said in the release. "It certainly suggests he is not expecting an enthusiastic response from Canadians."
The chorus of attacks seem to be gaining traction in the minds of voters. According to recent polls taken by The Strategic Counsel for CTV and The Globe and Mail, the Conservatives' support has been slowly but steadily eroding in key battleground ridings.
The Conservatives are down 10 points in B.C. battleground ridings from their support at the beginning of the campaign.
In Quebec, Conservative support is down 13 per cent in the same period, while in Ontario the party is down four per cent, according to the numbers released Monday.
An overlay on the front page of the Toronto Star on Tuesday showed Tory support sliding almost in tandem with the TSX.
