Inflation-focused Pierre Poilievre back to Parliament as health-care talks loom
Inflation-focused Pierre Poilievre back to Parliament as health-care talks loom
OTTAWA -
It's no secret what Pierre Poilievre thinks about government spending and inflation.
Same with guns.
But what does the Conservative leader think should happen when premiers ask for billions more in federal health-care dollars?
With a deal under negotiation between Ottawa and provinces, and premiers invited to a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in early February, the issue remains one where the Tory leader's position appears somewhat murky, including to some inside his own party.
Such is where Poilievre finds himself as he enters his second sitting inside the House of Commons as Opposition leader, knowing he must grow the Conservative tent if he hopes to win the next election, whenever it rolls around.
Strategists say a clear opportunity exists for the Conservative leader by way of worries about a possible recession this year, which is fuelling Canadians' existing economic anxieties
Talk of what the year may bring for the economy was on the minds of Conservatives as they met Saturday to discuss priorities for the months ahead given the House of Commons' return next week. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with his Liberal caucus the same day.
Poilievre regularly talks about the financial crunch Canadians are in, whether in struggling to afford a house and make mortgage payments or dealing with costly grocery bills and relying on food banks.
However, if his eye is turned to convincing those who may be skeptical about a Poilievre-led government, he would be wise to broaden his script beyond sticking to a sharp affordability message, said Shakir Chambers, a former adviser to provincial and federal conservative governments.
"We get the economy matters … but as leader of the country, you have to be able to talk about a lot more things."
In a press conference with reporters this week -- an event that has become more frequent on Parliament Hill -- Poilievre fielded questions on the matter of increased health-care spending and the role of privatization.
Besides pointing out that private delivery of services already exists in the country, he said his priorities for health care include shortening wait times and getting provinces to more quickly approve the foreign credentials of immigrants to deal with staffing shortages.
Nova Scotia MP Stephen Ellis, who is a doctor, said Saturday the country is in economic trouble and there are big regional differences between provinces when it comes to health-care needs.
"So continuing to look at this as something (to) continue to throw money at ... is something that we need to understand that we need to be fiscally conservative as Canadians," he said. "I think many of us are that at heart."
"All we're having is more big government, this top down approach, this federalist approach to say that, 'You must do this, or you must do that," he added. "That's not going to work.
For Melanie Paradis, a veteran of conservative campaigns including that of former Tory leader and Ontario MP Erin O'Toole, health care and affordability are top priorities for Canadians.
"There has to be a conservative solution for big things, like health care," she said.
Another issue set to emerge over the months ahead is the Liberals' long-awaited legislation about creating jobs in low-carbon industries in an effort to reach net-zero emissions, dubbed its "just transition" plan.
While Poilievre has vowed to cancel the federal consumer carbon price and instead reduce emissions through technologies, Conservatives have not yet spelled out what that would look like.On Saturday, Quebec MP Gerard Deltell, the party's environment critic, said a plan will be ready for an election.
One challenge strategists agree exists for Poilievre is pacing. While he does not want to roll out policy promises too early while an election may be off in the distance, he must also begin filling in the blanks for Canadians to know what to expect from him.
Paradis says Poilievre appears to have begun that work. This week, he released a video of him speaking compassionately about those with autism and other forms of neurodiversity and announced plans to share more resource revenue with First Nations
The Conservative caucus heard from a panel of First Nations tax and business leaders Saturday, which followed presentations from economists the day before.
Chambers said the challenge for the leader will be sustaining the momentum he captured during last year's leadership race, where he sold more than 300,000 memberships and often attracted crowds by hundreds and at times, thousands.
Since becoming leader, Poilievre has made a habit of spending many weekends on the road. He's visited both the Greater Toronto Area and Vancouver, both regions where Conservatives have struggled to grow support in recent elections. He has also met with members of different immigrant and racialized communities during the campaign-like stops -- another demographic Tories have struggled to connect with.
Laryssa Waler, a former director of communications for Ontario Premier Doug Ford, says Canada is facing no shortage of challenges, from the economy to health care, and rejects the premise it should be up to Poilievre to provide solutions.
"Pierre's job is to be the leader of the Opposition and that does not include bringing forward government policy about interprovincial monetary transfers," she said. "Your job is to highlight the problem."
One way Poilievre is trying to do that is with the message "everything feels broken." He repeated that in a speech before caucus Friday in which he listed off areas he feels Trudeau is failing to act, ranging from crime to housing prices.
Chris Chapin, who has worked on past leadership campaigns for Ontario Progressive Conservative candidates, says Poilievre's message is evocative, adding he can see why it's being used to lay the groundwork for whenever the next election is called.
He says while convincing people the country is broken is one thing, getting them to believe Poilievre is the one to fix it is another.
Ontario MP Marilyn Gladu said Saturday she sees excitement for Poilievre within caucus and beyond, adding she believes his message is resonating with Canadians.
Come next week, she said Conservatives see the top issue being the cost of living.
"I think the health-care system is another legitimate issue," she added.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 28, 2023.
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
U.S President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have announced updates on a number of cross-border issues, after a day of meetings on Parliament Hill.
More than 130,000 people have signed an e-petition calling on Canada to give transgender and non-binary people fleeing harmful laws in their home countries the right to claim asylum, but that's already possible in this country. Advocates say the popularity of the proposal shows politicians that Canadians want the government to affirm its welcoming position.
The Public Order Emergency Commission has concluded that the federal government met the threshold for invoking the Emergencies Act to bring an end to the 'Freedom Convoy' protests and blockades.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
The only thing most Canadians will remember about the budget this time next week is how the booze tax increase was reduced to two per cent from six, writes Don Martin in a column for CTVNews.ca.
Joe Biden comes for a sleepover next week to make Canada the 18th country he has visited since being sworn in as U.S. president, quite the protocol slippage from that fading, if not forgotten, tradition of Canada being the first foreign presidential pitstop, writes Don Martin in a column for CTVNews.ca.
After weeks of refusing to look further into foreign election interference, Justin Trudeau surrendered to intense pressure and appointed a 'special rapporteur' to review China's actions. In his exclusive column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin writes this 'startling change of heart' suggests the PMO is in panic mode and reflects badly on the prime minister's decision making.
The Trudeau tipping point is within sight. The moment when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau knows he has to quit for the good of the party or the Liberals realize they can't survive re-election with him at the helm is almost upon us, Don Martin writes in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
Bombshell revelations that suggest Chinese agents actively, fraudulently and successfully manipulated Canada's electoral integrity in the last two federal elections cannot be dismissed with the standard Justin Trudeau nothing-to-see-here shrug, Don Martin writes in his exclusive opinion column for CTVNews.ca.
Cape Breton University has more than doubled in size by enrolling thousands of international students, and critics say the campus and community weren't ready. Watch the documentary 'Cash Cow' on CTV W5, Saturday at 7 p.m.
A new Canadian study of 4.8 million people says a daily alcoholic drink isn't likely to send anyone to an early grave, nor will it offer any of the health benefits touted by previous studies, even if it is organic red wine.
W5 profiles the man who makes the sounds for breaking bones and squealing tires in Hollywood’s biggest films; and he does it from a small town in Ontario. Watch 'Sound Farms' at 7 p.m. on CTV W5.
Statistics Canada has released its new report about the Canadians level of confidence in Canada’s institutions, finding that recent immigrants are more likely to express confidence in the media and parliament.
In a choice forced upon them by the Canadian government, four mothers have made the agonizing decision to forfeit an opportunity to repatriate their children from open air prisons in northeast Syria.
Lawyers representing Toronto MP Han Dong served Global News with a libel notice on Friday over reports that alleged he spoke to a Chinese diplomat in February 2021 about delaying the release of the two Michaels, and that he was a 'witting affiliate' of Chinese interference networks – allegations that Dong denies.
A recent report from Royal LePage is predicting a drop in prices for Canadian cabins and cottages this year as demand softens from economic uncertainty and low housing stock.
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos says the government's plans for pharmacare are moving forward, but experts who study government drug plans suggest the Liberals may have lost the political will to take bold steps toward a national program.
Cape Breton University has more than doubled in size by enrolling thousands of international students, and critics say the campus and community weren't ready. Watch the documentary 'Cash Cow' on CTV W5, Saturday at 7 p.m.
The latest seasonal outlook from The Weather Network shows early April will continue to be chilly with flip-flopping temperatures bringing above and below the usual levels of precipitation seen around this time.
Authors of the final report into Nova Scotia’s April 2020 mass shooting said gender-based violence is an epidemic in Nova Scotia and across Canada, and it requires a society-wide response.
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked Tennessee's first-in-the-nation law placing strict limits on drag shows just hours before it was set to go into effect, siding with a group that filed a lawsuit claiming the statute violates the First Amendment.
When Donald Trump steps before a judge next week to be arraigned in a New York courtroom, it will not only mark the first time a former U.S. president has faced criminal charges. It will also represent a reckoning for a man long nicknamed 'Teflon Don,' who until now has managed to skirt serious legal jeopardy despite 40 years of legal scrutiny.
Europe's biggest armed conflict since World War II is poised to enter a new phase in the coming weeks. With no suggestion of a negotiated end to the 13 months of fighting between Russia and Ukraine, the Ukrainian defence minister said last week that a spring counteroffensive could begin as soon as April.
A chipper-sounding Pope Francis was discharged Saturday from the Rome hospital where he was treated for bronchitis, quipping to journalists before being driven away that he's 'still alive.'
A sunset spectacle featuring two mitten-shaped rock formations played out this week at Monument Valley on the Navajo Nation along the Arizona and Utah border.
Thousands of people rallied across the country Friday as part of a Transgender Day of Visibility in support of the rights of transgender people and their resilience amid what many denounced as an increasingly hostile environment.
This year's budget reveals the federal Liberals envision Canada relying more on its allies for trade in the future, economists and geopolitical experts say -- even if that could result in higher prices or missed opportunities.
The Liberal government left employment insurance reform out of the federal budget this week over concern that reforming the program amid a slowing economy could drive up premiums for workers and employers.
Lawyers representing Toronto MP Han Dong served Global News with a libel notice on Friday over reports that alleged he spoke to a Chinese diplomat in February 2021 about delaying the release of the two Michaels, and that he was a 'witting affiliate' of Chinese interference networks – allegations that Dong denies.
A new Canadian study of 4.8 million people says a daily alcoholic drink isn't likely to send anyone to an early grave, nor will it offer any of the health benefits touted by previous studies, even if it is organic red wine.
The federal government now expects far more Canadians with long-overdue dental needs to sign up for its insurance plan, and the health minister says that's why the estimated cost has risen by $7 billion.
The B.C. government's bid to restrict the sale of diabetes drug Ozempic to prevent non-Canadian residents draining supplies was the right move and a long time coming, says Brett Skinner, founder and CEO of the Canadian Health Policy Institute.
Italy is temporarily blocking the artificial intelligence software ChatGPT in the wake of a data breach as it investigates a possible violation of stringent European Union data protection rules, the government's privacy watchdog said Friday.
New research suggests the classic image of a Tyrannosaurus rex with massive, sharp teeth might be wrong. A study in the journal Science suggests the teeth on a T. rex was likely covered by scaly lips and didn't stick out when its mouth was closed.
W5 profiles the man who makes the sounds for breaking bones and squealing tires in Hollywood’s biggest films; and he does it from a small town in Ontario. Watch 'Sound Farms' at 7 p.m. on CTV W5.
King Charles III won plenty of hearts during his three-day visit to Germany, his first foreign trip since ascending to the throne following the death of his mother, Elizabeth II, last year.
After the first season of “The Last of Us” generated big buzz and an economic boom for Alberta, British Columbia may be next in line to host the production team.
The UBS takeover of embattled rival Credit Suisse has shaken Switzerland's self-image and dented its reputation as a global financial center, analysts say, warning that the country's prosperity could grow too dependent on a single banking behemoth.
Under intense scrutiny from Washington that could lead to a potential ban, the top attorney for TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance defended the social media platform's plan to safeguard U.S. user data from China.
A 2018 Twitter post by Tesla CEO Elon Musk unlawfully threatened Tesla employees with the loss of stock options if they decided to be represented by a union, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.
Statistics Canada has released its new report about the Canadians level of confidence in Canada’s institutions, finding that recent immigrants are more likely to express confidence in the media and parliament.
Vogue Philippines has revealed Apo Whang-Od as the cover star of its April issue, a move that makes the 106-year-old tattoo artist from the Philippines the oldest person ever to appear on the front of Vogue.
With just five weeks before King Charles III's coronation, a British manufacturer of fine bone china is busy making 'God Save The King' commemorative plates and mugs for the historic occasion.
The league and its players came to an agreement early Saturday on a new seven-year collective bargaining agreement, the NBA announced. It is still pending ratification, though that process is almost certainly no more than a formality.
Daniil Medvedev hasn't won a title in the United States since capturing the 2021 U.S. Open, when he turned away Novak Djokovic's bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam.
Holding a sprint race on a street circuit at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix is a "ludicrous" proposition which will cost Formula One teams when they "trash" their cars, Red Bull boss Christian Horner said.
Formula One officials confirmed on Friday that teams can no longer touch their cars with jacks during penalty pitstops in the wake of the Fernando Alonso controversy at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Red Bull principal Christian Horner has criticized the stricter interpretation of a rule that bans Formula One team employees from climbing pit wall for victory celebrations.
