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Anti-vaccine and anti-Liberal protesters managed to unite the rival parties vying for political traction in this month’s federal election as all leaders denounced an incident this week in which Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau was hit by gravel thrown at him at a campaign stop in London, Ont., on Monday.
“This is horrible. It’s completely wrong. There’s no justification for throwing rocks at people,” NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Tuesday at an event in Toronto. “I don’t understand what these folks are thinking, what type of example they are trying to set for their kids.”
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole also condemned the incident, the latest in a series of protests that have targeted Mr. Trudeau during the campaign.
“It’s completely unacceptable to see harassment of political figures, of media. We live in a great democracy and let’s act like we do,” he said. “I don’t agree with Mr. Trudeau’s approach on many things, but I respect his ability to be able to communicate with Canadians free of harassment, intimidation and violence.”
Queen’s Park reporter Laura Stone and parliamentary reporter Marieke Walsh report on the incident here.
TODAY’S HEADLINES
CPC LEADER FACES GUN-POLICY QUESTIONS - Erin O’Toole said he won’t “prejudge” the outcome of a firearms classification review that a Conservative government would conduct if elected, leaving open the possibility that the federal government’s ban on some 1,500 assault-style weapons could be lifted. Story here.
PUBLISHING SECTOR LOOKING FOR ELECTION COMMITMENTS - Though the three main federal parties say they would support arts and culture industries that have been hit hard by pandemic restrictions, only one party has outlined financial figures in its election platform for assisting the books and publishing sector.
PARTIES COMPETE ON INNOVATION - During their six years in power, the federal Liberals positioned themselves as champions of innovation, but during the ongoing election campaign, the Conservatives are trying to take the lead with an extensive innovation platform that is more responsive to the tech sector’s demands. Story here.
ELECTION MARKS SHIFT IN WATERLOO REGION - A new political axiom may have arisen in Canadian politics: As Greater Toronto goes, so goes Waterloo Region. In previous federal elections, the cities of Kitchener, Waterloo and Cambridge – which make up the region about 100 kilometres southwest of Toronto – have tended to vote as a bloc, and for whatever party ends up forming government. Waterloo Region has traditionally been a bellwether – but that could be changing. Writer-at-large John Ibbitson explains here.
LPC CALGARY CANDIDATE SAYS VOLUNTEERS HARASSED - A federal Liberal candidate in Calgary says two of her volunteers were spat on, slapped and sworn at as they campaigned Monday, the same day party leader Justin Trudeau was hit by gravel thrown by protesters at an event in Southwestern Ontario. (From CBC.) Story here.
B.C. MAYOR SAYS HE WAS ATTACKED OVER POLICE POLICY - The mayor of British Columbia’s second most populous city says a protester ran over his foot at a grocery store over the weekend, marking a dangerous new low for those fighting his government’s move to end the city’s relationship with the RCMP in favour of a new municipal police force.
QUEBEC MAYORS CALL FOR GUN COMMITMENT - The mayors of the five largest cities in Quebec are banding together to call for a ban on the possession of assault rifles and handguns. (From CBC.) Story here.
HEHR WANTS TO BE CALGARY MAYOR - Former Liberal MP Kent Hehr, who resigned from the federal cabinet over harassment allegations and was defeated in the 2019 election, is running to be Calgary’s next mayor.
BUTTS WEIGHS IN ON ELECTION - Gerald Butts, the former principal secretary to Justin Trudeau, spoke to Maclean’s about why the Liberals ran into trouble – and why there is no way he would return to help the federal Liberal campaign, which he says is a “tie game with a lot of hockey left to play.” Story here.
LEADERS
Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-François Blanchet campaigns in Ottawa and Gatineau, with events that include a a news conference and a tour of the venue for this week’s leaders’ debate.
Campaign-trail commitment: Blanchet denounced a move by the English-language school board in Montreal to criticize Quebec’s Bill 96. More details here.
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole made an announcement and held a media availability in Ottawa. He was scheduled to hold a virtual town hall for Ontario voters.
Campaign-trail commitment: O’Toole introduced a plan to lower cellphone and internet bills and improve broadband access that includes allowing international telecommunications companies to provide services to Canadian consumers, provided the same treatment is reciprocated for Canadian companies in that company’s home country.
Green Party Leader Annamie Paul travels to Ottawa and observes Rosh Hashanah.
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau made an announcement in Montreal, and was scheduled to participate in a virtual volunteer town hall in Ottawa.
Campaign-trail commitment: Trudeau detailed the Liberal housing agenda, which includes a rent-to-own program to help renters work toward home ownership and creating a tax-free home savings account to help young Canadians save for a down payment.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh made an announcement on climate action and held a media availability in Toronto.
Campaign-trail commitment: Singh promised to double funding for public transit projects to help municipalities make their public transit fleets fully electric by 2030.
ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
From John Ibbitson, with the Erin O’Toole tour:
“Although Erin O’Toole is leading the Conservative Party in a federal election campaign for the first time, his campaign team is running a tight ship. Events start on time (mostly, sort of), hotels and airplanes are ready when needed – and, most important, the food and drink are good and plentiful.
“There was, however, a near disaster in Nanaimo, B.C. on Saturday. Organizers had arranged for burrito bowls to be available for journalists after an evening rally. But when the restaurateur saw the size of the order, he said his staff would quit if he made them fill it. Burrito bowls were out. “How are we going to get back to the campaign plane now that the wheels have fallen off this bus?” one journalist howled. (Okay, it was me.) Fortunately, the wagon master was able to make arrangements with a different Mexican restaurant, and we flew back to Vancouver sated, wheels back on.”
From Laura Stone, with the Justin Trudeau tour:
“Throughout a two-day stint travelling through the Toronto area and Southern Ontario on Sunday and Monday, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau was met by groups of angry protesters who shouted and chanted obscenities at him as they waited outside of his events. Despite the locations not being publicized in advance, the groups – some wielding People’s Party of Canada signs – set up shop outside the restaurants where Mr. Trudeau was meeting with supporters and volunteers. Gripes from the crowd ranged from vaccination passports and mask mandates, to communism as well as the mainstream media, with many blasting their complaints through megaphones. Mr. Trudeau on Monday said he didn’t want to call them protesters but rather “anti-vaxxer mobs.” But he said he wouldn’t stop attending the events, either, which are now marked with a heavy police presence. “Yes, there is a small fringe element in this country that is angry, that doesn’t believe in science, that is lashing out with racist, misogynistic attacks. But Canadians – the vast majority of Canadians – are not represented by them,” he said at a campaign stop in Welland, Ont. At his last event on Monday in London, Ont., some people threw small gravel-type rocks at Mr. Trudeau as he headed toward his campaign bus.”
ELECTION SPOTLIGHT - NEW BRUNSWICK
10 seats. At dissolution of Parliament: 7 Liberal. 3 Conservatives
J.P. Lewis, associate professor of political science at the University of New Brunswick Saint John:
“This time last year, New Brunswickers were in the middle of Canada’s first COVID election. The campaign and result was looked at by those outside of the province as a possible precedent of things to come – an incumbent government with strong approval on handling the pandemic held onto power. In fact, the Blaine Higgs-led Progressive Conservatives turned their precarious minority government into a more stable majority.
“With voting during COVID-19 becoming routine to New Brunswickers (municipal elections took place in May) the federal landscape approaching election day has fallen into traditional voting patterns – strong Liberal support in the north and eastern ridings of the province with strong Conservative support in the south and west of the province, with three historically unpredictable ridings becoming races to watch with the potential of providing early national trends on election night.
“Miramichi-Grand Lake was decided by less than one point in 2019 and features the face-off of two former provincial ministers – Lisa Harris (LIB) and Jake Stewart (CPC). The expansive riding that reaches from the outskirts of Fredericton to the mighty Miramichi Bay is an electorally volatile area of the province, as even the provincial contests have seen major swings in the vote. Saint John-Rothesay is the former riding of the late – and controversial – Progressive Conservative MP Elsie Wayne and stretches from the Bay of Fundy north to the affluent town of Rothesay. Incumbent Liberal Wayne Long has made national headlines with his opposition to party policies, including tax reform and the handling of SNC Lavelin, and will face off against former Saint John mayor Mel Norton. Finally, the riding that will get the most attention on election night is Fredericton, where former Green MP turned Liberal incumbent Jenica Atwin will try to hold onto her seat against the new Green candidate and the Conservative candidate, who finished second in 2019. As this riding includes provincial Green leader David Coon’s riding, this contest will not only be a referendum on Atwin’s floor crossing, but also a test on the Green brand in New Brunswick.”
PUBLIC OPINION
Together with CTV and Nanos Research, The Globe and Mail is doing daily surveys to track which party and leader Canadians prefer. Check here for the latest results.
OPINION
The Globe and Mail’s Editorial Board on Erin O’Toole’s attempt to holster the gun issue so he doesn’t shoot himself in the foot: “The Conservatives have gone from promising to instantly repeal the most prominent Liberal firearms rule to promising to at least study it first. And what of Liberal plans? They’re better than the Conservatives, but, infuriatingly, the Liberals still want to punt the task of banning handguns to provinces or municipalities. If there is little place for assault-style semi-automatic rifles in Canada, there’s even less for easily concealed handguns. They have no legitimate civilian use, can’t be used for hunting and kill more Canadians each year than long guns. Passing the buck to lower levels of government is doomed to fail. What good would it do for one town or province to ban handguns, if they’re legal the next town or province over?”
André Picard (The Globe and Mail ) on why all parties should commit to revive Bill C-35 to establish the Canada Disability Benefit regardless of the election outcome: “Our social welfare system also condemns people to poverty. In 2019, a single person with a disability was eligible for annual provincial welfare payments ranging from a low of $9,843 in New Brunswick to a high of $15,293 in British Columbia. Can you imagine trying to live on $820 a month for your rent, food and every other basic need? And, if you work, much of your earnings get clawed back. What the Canada Disability Benefit would do is top up the provincial payments to lift people out of abject poverty to, well, able-to-eat-lunch levels of poverty. It would essentially be a guaranteed basic-income program for people with disabilities.”
Emmanuelle Latraverse (Le Journal de Montréal) on the political risk of Erin O’Toole trying to please everyone: (Translation) “For assault weapons are not the only example of doublespeak between Erin O’Toole, the CCP leadership candidate and Erin O’Toole, the aspiring prime minister. The place of private care in health. Mandatory vaccination. The $6-billion for daycares in Quebec. On each of these issues, the Conservative leader prefers to maintain the vagueness rather than vigorously defend his ideas. The more weeks go by, the less clear it is. Whether loved or hated, Stephen Harper took responsibility for himself. On the abolition of the gun registry, on mandatory minimum sentences, direct assistance to families for daycare, on balancing the budget. It has never been very popular. But he ruled for 10 years.”
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