Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says a Tory government wouldn’t allow Parliament to break for the summer until three omnibus bills containing many of his campaign pledges are passed, while Liberal Leader Mark Carney pledged support for the steel industry, as the leaders campaigned on April 25.
Poilievre said if elected prime minister he would oversee “100 days of change” to reverse a slew of Liberal policies impacting energy, infrastructure building, and public safety. He made the announcement during a campaign event in Saskatoon.
The plan includes tabling three major bills. The first addresses affordability and includes measures such as cutting income tax by 15 percent for the lowest bracket, cutting the GST on news homes that cost less than $1.3 million, and removing the entire carbon tax and regulations on fuel and electricity.
The second bill would seek to address public safety by repealing “catch-and-release” bail laws, creating a “three strikes, you’re out” regime for repeat offenders, imposing life sentences on major traffickers of people, guns, and fentanyl, and allowing for consecutive life sentences for mass murderers.
The third bill on boosting the economy would repeal legislation cited by the Tories as blocking resource development and exports, such as Bill C-69 on impact assessments and C-48 on the West coast tanker ban.
Poilievre made the pledge on the last weekday of the campaign, saying the election “comes down to one word, and that is change.”
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With polls giving Liberals the edge for several weeks, projections in recent days have been more around whether they will form a minority or majority government.
Even in the event that Poilievre secured a majority government, his commitment to enact the three omnibus bills prior to the summer recess could still be challenging because the Senate is predominantly composed of members appointed by former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trudeau filled all vacancies and has appointed 85 of the 105 senators currently serving.
Defend Steel, Focus on Trump
While Poilievre has increasingly emphasized “change” in his campaign, Liberal Leader Carney has maintained a steady focus on U.S. President Donald Trump.
Carney visited a steel mill in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., on April 25 and repeated some of the promises he had made to protect the industry affected by Trump’s tariffs, saying “all levers available” would be used to do so. He argued Trump is determined to take over Canada by weakening it and that he’s the best candidate to protect the country and guide it through economic growth.
Trump “wants to break us so America can own us,” said Carney, who mentioned his plan to implement a procurement strategy for nation-building projects which would prioritize the use of Canadian materials such as steel, aluminum, and critical minerals.
He also highlighted his promise to create a $2 billion strategic fund to help the auto industry also hit by U.S. tariffs.
Trump has linked these tariffs to his desire to see vehicle production brought back to the United States. He repeated this week his country shouldn’t have to get cars made in Canada. The North American auto industry has been deeply integrated for decades.
Carney and Trump had a call on March 28 after the U.S. car tariffs were announced and Carney was asked by reporters to share more details about it during the media event on April 25.
“What is the most important in a discussion, in a meeting, is the conclusions of the meeting,” Carney said, adding that Trump had agreed the United States and Canada would negotiate as “two sovereign nations” after the elections.
Carney had told the public immediately after the March call that Trump had respected Canada’s sovereignty, after weeks of Trump talking about making Canada the 51st state. Questions were raised about this in an anonymously sourced CBC report on April 24, saying that Trump had mentioned Canada as a 51st state during the call. Carney confirmed later that day that was indeed the case.
While Poilievre and Carney laid out broader plans for the country, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said the first order of business after the election would be to adopt a budget in the House of Commons and that it should be used to “fight back against Donald Trump.” The NDP is currently projected to lose a number of seats, but it had played a key role in the previous Parliament by ensuring the minority Liberals remained in power through a confidence agreement in exchange for advancing New Democrat priorities.
While attending the convention of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union in Toronto on April 25, Singh said he would push for a budget that increases investments in health care and puts a cap on grocery prices.
