Taking part in his first English election debate, Liberal Leader Mark Carney cast himself as a safe pair of hands for a Canada in crisis — while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre sought to frame him as more of the same after a decade of Liberal government.
Carney is leading in the polls and became the main target of all his rivals’ attacks early in Thursday’s final debate of the election — a trend that carried over from Wednesday’s French language debate.
Poilievre repeatedly sought to draw a straight line from former prime minister Justin Trudeau and his policies to Carney.
“We need a change, and you, sir, are not a change,” he said.
“Are you prepared to elect the same Liberal MPs, the same Liberal ministers, the same Liberal staffers, all over again for a fourth term? Mr. Carney, Justin Trudeau’s staffers are actually here with you at this debate in Montreal, writing the talking points that you are regurgitating into the microphone,” Poilievre added.
“Look, I do my own talking points, thank you very much,” Carney shot back.
The Liberal leader said the biggest threat to affordability and the economy is U.S. President Donald Trump.
Early in the debate, Carney said the bilateral relationship with the U.S. has “fundamentally changed” because Trump is looking to restructure the global trading system.
“The starting point has to be one of strength. It has to show that we have control of our own economic destiny, has to have a clear plan here at home to build this economy, to diversify our trading partners with like-minded countries, and also has to have a position of strength in terms of our reaction to the U.S. unjustified tariffs,” Carney said.
But Poilievre claimed the Liberal government is hostile toward Canada’s energy sector and pipelines. He accused the Liberals of weakening the economy and vowed that a Conservative government would repeal “anti-energy laws, red tape and high taxes.”
He attacked Carney for not repealing Bill C-69, which overhauled how major national infrastructure projects are reviewed for environmental impacts.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh accused Carney of failing to defend Canadian jobs threatened by U.S. tariffs since becoming prime minister and said the Liberal government is pro-pipeline because it purchased the Trans Mountain pipeline.
“I don’t know what Pierre is complaining about,” Singh said.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said that while Carney claims to be different from Trudeau, he should prove that he’s better than him by disclosing his financial assets — an issue that has dogged Carney throughout the campaign.
“You have to prove something, and you have to reveal what you own in those companies if you want people to believe you,” Blanchet said.
— Written by Kyle Duggan in Ottawa and Morgan Lowrie in Montreal
