Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre greets aircraft mechanics during a press conference at Fast Air in Winnipeg, on March 29.JOHN WOODS/The Canadian Press
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says reversing the Liberal government’s actions over the past decade is Canada’s only way to withstand the effects of a trade war launched by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Speaking to reporters at a campaign stop in Winnipeg on Saturday, Mr. Poilievre said the Liberals’ decisions to block pipelines, liquified natural gas plants, mines and nuclear power projects are to blame for Canada’s dependency on the U.S.
“We don’t know exactly what the Americans are going to do. The President seems to change his mind from time to time,” he said. “But we know what we can do. What we can do is take back control of our economic destiny, build an economic fortress by bringing home production, unlocking our resources, and standing strong for our economy here at home.”
The Globe and Mail reported on Friday, citing 17 confidential sources close to the Conservative campaign, that Mr. Poilievre has been facing mounting discontent among party ranks over an unwillingness to pivot from attacks on the Liberal government toward a laser focus on Mr. Trump’s tariffs directed at Canada.
Tensions have risen within the Poilievre-led party, The Globe reported, as public-opinion polls show the Liberals are now ahead of the Conservatives. According to three recent polls, Mr. Poilievre has lost his roughly 20-per-cent advantage over the Liberals since Justin Trudeau’s resignation as prime minister and the election of former central banker Mark Carney as Liberal Leader.
Earlier this week, Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s campaign manager, Kory Teneycke, said at an Empire Club of Canada discussion that Mr. Poilievre will lose the federal election on April 28 unless he quickly responds to Canadians’ fear and anxiety over an economic war by Mr. Trump, who has repeatedly talked about annexing the country.
Mr. Teneycke, previously an adviser to former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper, said Mr. Poilievre shares too many commonalities with Mr. Trump, including the campaign slogan “Canada First,” which emulates the U.S. President’s “America First.”
On Saturday, however, Mr. Poilievre continued to attack the Liberals’ record, saying “the Liberals will say whatever they have to say to win, but they will go right back to their radical policies.”
Mr. Poilievre also unveiled a promise to offer tax writeoffs to trade workers who must travel more than 120 kilometres from their homes, while putting an end to tax writeoffs for the use of luxury corporate jets, which he said benefit wealthy people such as Mr. Carney. He did not provide details about how much the writeoffs would cost the federal government.
Asked whether a strategy shift toward tariffs can be expected from the Conservatives, Mr. Poilievre said: “We will obviously retaliate against unfair American tariffs and work to eliminate them. But what we really need to do is reverse the weakness caused by the lost Liberal decade.”
At a Conservative Party rally later in the day, Mr. Poilievre’s core message was the same. “My friends, by electing the Liberals to a fourth term,” he told supporters in Winnipeg, “it will only get worse. It’s time for a change.”
Some attendees, however, were not entirely convinced. Sonya Raulino, an undecided voter who came with her staunch Conservative husband, said she wanted to be there to learn more about Mr. Poilievre’s platform. “I know how my husband will vote. But I’m walking away still unsure about whether I’ll vote the same,” she said.
“I do worry about how Poilievre will address Trump’s tariffs. If I’m being honest, I don’t like the Liberals, but I also really don’t like Trump. It worries me how similar these two guys are. It’s one of the biggest cons on my pros-and-cons list.”
Meanwhile, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh visited a food centre in Ottawa where he announced emergency price caps on basic grocery items, such as pasta and frozen vegetables.
“A lot of Canadians are worried about how much it costs them when they go to the grocery store,” Mr. Singh said. “I want folks to know that we see you and we hear you.”
Poll numbers suggest New Democrats could be in jeopardy of losing official party status, which requires 12 seats in the House of Commons.
Mr. Carney also spent the day in Ottawa, meeting with volunteers and supporters in the suburban riding of Nepean, where the Liberal Leader is running for the first time as a candidate. He did not make any new campaign promises Saturday.
With reports from Robert Fife and The Canadian Press