Less than a week after naming his new cabinet vowing a renewed focus on the concerns of Canadians, the one name Prime Minister Justin Trudeau couldn’t keep out of his mouth on Monday was Pierre Poilievre.
At an event announcing multimillion-dollar joint federal-municipal investment towards building more homes in Hamilton, Ont., Trudeau brought the Conservative leader up multiple times, from panning his housing, health and homelessness policy proposals, to distilling his leadership style down to “cuts and be angry,” while vowing the Liberals intend to take a different tact.
“His answer to everything is cuts and be angry, that’s not Canada. That’s not how we build a stronger future… Canadians roll up their sleeves and get to work, and build and invest in themselves and their communities. That’s what we do, we partner with people. We don’t pick fights with mayors,” said the prime minister, who was donning a bandage in the middle of his forehead.
It was the result of bumping his head over the weekend while playing with his kids, his office confirmed to CTV News.
“That’s where the anger that he is drumming up is dangerous for Canadians, who would much rather work hard and build a strong future than throw up their hands and say, ‘Oh, it’s all terrible, it’s all broken, let’s all stay home.’ No. That’s not who Canadians are,” Trudeau continued.
“So I won’t be stirring up anger, I will be pointing out where his proposals are irresponsible and unserious. But, I will stay focused on solving the challenges Canadians are facing, rather than exploiting them for political gain, like Pierre Poilievre does.”
This lengthy retort was in response to a question about Trudeau’s repeated referencing of Poilievre, and whether the prime minister was threatened by his leadership or what he’s tapped into. Trudeau said no, his focus is on Canadians who are having a hard time making ends meet.
Though, during the event Trudeau slammed the Conservatives for pulling themselves “entirely out of the housing business for 10 years” as contributing to the current supply crunch; criticized their position on tent encampments; and chalked their opposition to dental care up to hypocrisy and being “completely disconnected.”
“Why would you say that dental care is fine for MPs and their families, and it’s not inflationary for people to send their kids to the dentist if you have money to do it? But to let low-income people and people who are otherwise struggling, have kids with a brighter smile, and vote against that in the name of protecting from higher inflation, when inflation has steadily been going down, that’s him making baseless arguments, completely disconnected from fact,” the prime minister said.
These latest comments build on a renewed messaging approach launched last week— an effort by an embattled minority Liberal government to reset the agenda—seeking to present a clear contrast between what a re-elected Trudeau team would offer and what a vote for Conservative change could mean for the country.
With still several hot weeks left before the fall sitting of Parliament will see the two leaders square off across the aisle in question period, both men have been travelling across Canada to drum up support.
Poilievre, at his own campaign-style stops this summer, has offered his fair share of anti-Trudeau rhetoric, while proposing his own contrasts to how a government led by him would be better for the country.
“After eight years of Justin Trudeau, things are going very badly for the people of Sudbury and all across Northern Ontario. The stories that I have heard in places like Kenora, Timmins and Thunder Bay have both shocked and broken my heart… Something new is happening in Canada: tent cities, tent cities in almost every town, village, and metropolitan centre. Something that was almost unheard of eight years ago before Justin Trudeau, but what do you expect people to do? They can’t pay 100 per cent increase in rent,” he said at a Sudbury, Ont. “Axe Trudeau’s Tax” rally over the weekend.
“This is the misery and brokenness that people are living as a result of eight years of Justin Trudeau. But, the good news is that it wasn’t like this before Justin Trudeau and it won’t be like this after he’s gone. A common-sense Conservative government will reverse his policies and bring home the Canada we know and love,” Poilievre said.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
