Conservative leadership: Poilievre fends off attacks, candidates debate future of party
Candidates vying for the Conservative leadership framed the country — and the party — as deeply divided at the first official debate on Wednesday, and took turns pointing fingers at one rival they accuse of driving disunity in the race.
The loudest applause in the Edmonton Convention Centre, packed with more than 1,000 people, repeatedly went to longtime MP Pierre Poilievre, who said his vision for the country is about giving people “freedom to take back control of their lives."
A major part of his pitch is about fighting inflation. During the debate, he took specific aim at Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem, saying he would fire him because Canada's inflation rate is the highest it’s been in decades.
"The Bank of Canada governor has allowed himself to become the ATM machine of this government. And so I would replace him with a new governor who would reinstate our low-inflation mandate, protect the purchasing power of our dollar and honour the working people who earn those dollars," Poilievre said.
Jean Charest, Quebec's former premier, responded by saying the MP's remarks were irresponsible and sowed distrust in the system.
"Conservatives do not do that."
Leslyn Lewis, a social conservative who placed third in the party's 2020 leadership race before being elected as an MP for Ontario in last year's federal election, said after the debate she found the comment concerning, saying it "undermines credibility in our economic system."
"I don't agree that Members of Parliament should be meddling in the Bank of Canada."
Poilievre was the only candidate not to speak to reporters following the debate.
The popular Conservative, who has at times drawn crowds by the thousands at campaign events across the country, was repeatedly targeted by different candidates on topics including his stance on abortion and embrace of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin.
Charest, along with Lewis, accused Poilievre of encouraging Canadians to invest in the risky digital currency.
Patrick Brown, mayor of Brampton, Ont., said "magic internet money" like Bitcoin fluctuates wildly and Poilievre shouldn't be encouraging Canada's vulnerable investors to gamble their savings.
In response, Poilievre said he did not encourage people to invest in Bitcoin, but does not want to see it banned because investors deserve the right to choose how to spend their money.
Poilievre also stated that a government led by him wouldn't pass or introduce legislation restricting access to abortion. Charest, who said he supports abortion rights, called that answer insufficient, saying that Canadian women deserved to know where he stood.
"Every candidate in this race needs to tell the women of Canada where they stand, whether they're pro or against. The women of Canada deserve to know where they stand, and Mr. Poilievre's answer, quite frankly, does not fit that test," said Charest.
Poilievre later said he believes in freedom of choice and would allow free votes from his caucus on the topic. He also laid into Charest's own record on the issue.
"You're the only one on this stage who actually voted for a law that would recriminalize abortion when you were part of the Mulroney government. You did," said Poilievre.
- Read the bios: get to know the Conservative candidates and their political pasts
- For more on where each candidate stands on key issues, read our primer
"And you can take a moment now to renounce your earlier vote if you've changed your mind, but that was your position. You seem to have forgotten. You've forgotten a lot of things about your record."
In 1990, Charest voted in favour of Bill C-43, which Brian Mulroney’s government brought in after a 1988 Supreme Court ruling decriminalized abortion. The bill would have recriminalized the procedure except when a woman’s health was at risk, but it died in a tie vote in the Senate.
Without mentioning Poilievre's name, Brown also used his opening statement to take a shot at the longtime Conservative's bombastic political style, saying it's not what the party needs to grow in suburbs and areas like the Greater Toronto Area.
"The choice before the party is clear," Brown said.
"Do we want an unelectable party leader who drives voters away, walk straight into Liberal traps, giving unclear answers on divisible issues like abortion, and wedges Conservatives against each other?”
Most of the six candidates directly referenced COVID-19 vaccine mandates as one of the key reasons for what they see as division in the country, with Lewis saying she believes Canada needs to become a beacon of life again because people are "traumatized" from pandemic-related health rules.
Charest was a notable exception, as he pointed to disagreements over oil and gas between the eastern and western parts of the country as the cause of the conflict.
“I see a country that is deeply divided and I am running because I believe that national unity is the No. 1 challenge of any prime minister,” he said.
Although the race has been described as a contentious battle for the soul of the party after three consecutive election losses to the Liberals, the atmosphere of Wednesday’s event was at times markedly lighter. Candidates were asked a series of personal questions about their favourite political heroes, what books they were reading and the last television show they binged.
Speaking afterwards, Charest, who led the former federal Progressive Conservative party in the 1990s, said he found the debate formal "unusual" and wasn't expecting to field questions so personal.
Moderator Tom Clark, a former political journalist, enforced at times complex rules. One segment required candidates to raise a prop paddle in order to participate, and Clark took time away from candidates whose supporters interrupted the debate with cheers. A clip of a sad trombone also played when contenders broke certain rules.
Candidates were prodded to deliver clear answers on policy items from supporting a no-fly zone over Ukraine, supply management and implementing the 94 calls to action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.
For his vision for Canada, Rural Ontario MP Scott Aitchison said he wants to renew the promise that the next generation of Canadians will be better than the one before and remove divisive rhetoric from politics.
Roman Baber, the Independent Ontario MPP who was kicked out of Premier Doug Ford’s caucus for opposing COVID-19 restrictions, said he wants to return democracy to Canada and end what he called "21st-century segregation," referring to vaccine mandates.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2022.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Residents of northern Alberta First Nation told to shelter in place
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Local Spotlight
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan won't cut hair until Stanley Cup comes to Edmonton
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
UBC football star turning heads in lead up to NFL draft
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Cat found at Pearson airport 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.