Liberal Party leader calls Poilievre a ‘fraud’ and ‘tyrant’ during Commons election

Liberal House Leader Karina Gould opened the fall session of Parliament on Monday by calling Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre a “fraud” and a “tyrant” and accusing him of pursuing a secret agenda that Canadians will not like.

“What I heard from Mr. Poilievre yesterday was so over the top, so irresponsible, so immature and something that only a crook would do,” Gould said Monday in Ottawa.

She said the Conservative leader’s attacks on carbon pricing are an attempt “to distract Canadians from his real agenda … because he knows they won’t like it if they find out.”

Gould was referring to a speech Poilievre gave to his parliamentary group on Sunday morning, in which he said the government’s plan to raise the price on carbon would send the economy into “nuclear winter.”

“With such a high tax, there would be mass starvation and malnutrition… Our seniors would have to lower the temperature to 14 or 13 degrees Celsius to survive the winter,” Poilievre said.

“Inflation would be crazy, and people wouldn’t be able to leave their homes or go anywhere.”

Gould said the financial problems facing Canadians would worsen if the Poilievre government cuts benefits for seniors and families.

She accused the Conservative leader of intimidating reporters and promising to defund the CBC at a time of “incredible disinformation.” She said that when journalists challenge Poilievre, he responds “like a tyrant, like someone who can’t handle criticism.”

Return to a “normal” minority parliament

Gould also spoke of the death of her party’s governance agreement with the New Democrats. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh announced on Sept. 4 that he was terminating his party’s agreement with the Liberals.

An agreement reached between the two parties in March 2022 committed the NDP to supporting a Liberal government in a confidence vote in exchange for legislative commitments on NDP priorities.

“I know the end of the supply and confidence agreement changes things a little bit, but all it really does is return us to a normal minority parliament,” Gould said.

She added that the Liberal government would work with other parties on individual bills to pass appropriate legislation.

MPs are expected to debate Bill C-71 today, which amends Canadian citizenship laws to change unconstitutional legislation regarding so-called “missing Canadians.”

Justice Jasmine Akbarali gave the Liberal government until December to amend parts of the law, reversing changes made in 2009 by the government of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Harper’s changes prevented some foreign-born Canadians from passing on their citizenship to children also born abroad.

Gould also said her government wants to move forward this fall on Bill C-66, which would amend the National Defence Act to harmonize the military justice system with recent changes to the civilian court system.

These changes also include stripping the military police and military justice of the powers to conduct investigations and

4 Ways to Play Chicken

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said his party is willing to work with a Liberal government in the House of Commons if the legislation it proposes is good for Quebec and parliament survives long enough to get any work done.

“We’re playing chicken with four cars,” he said Monday in Ottawa. “Eventually one will hit the other. There will be a wreck, so I’m not sure this session will last very long.”

Blanchet said that to encourage his party to work together, he would like the Liberal government to support several bills introduced by members of his party, including:

• Bill C-319which would mean increasing pensions by 10 per cent for people aged 64 to 74, to bring them in line with the increase paid to retirees aged 75 and over.
• Bill C-282which would protect Canada’s supply management system.
• Bill C-367which amends the Penal Code to eliminate religion as an exception for hate speech.