Greenpeace Canada is non-partisan: we don’t help any specific celebration or candidate on this election – nonetheless, this doesn’t imply we’re impartial. We’ll name out dangerous insurance policies and concepts the place we see them. And we see lots of these in Poilievre’s lately launched CPC platform. GP Canada’s Digital Content material Specialist Emily has partnered with Toronto artist Christopher Lambe (who you would possibly acknowledge from his satirical political t-shirts) to interrupt down what’s inside. Discover a comparability of all political celebration local weather plans right here.
With early voting out of the way in which – and an spectacular voter turnout, no much less – Pierre Poilievre and the Conservative Social gathering have lastly graced voters with their “costed” coverage platform. Costed is in quotations as a result of the 30 web page doc – full with 17 shiny photographs of Pierre – appears to tug its numbers out of skinny air, in accordance with Kevin Web page who was the Parliamentary Funds Watchdog for 5 years.
Together with these numbers – which, as we will get into, had been audited in conjunction with those that need to unleash DOGE on Canada – probably the most regarding issues is that regardless of the ‘Canada First’ marketing campaign, this can be a platform that feels prefer it’s ripped proper from Trump’s ‘America First’ playbook.
Do the Numbers Actually Add Up?
For the celebration that many affiliate with “fiscal accountability,” this new platform is a far cry from something the Conservatives have put out earlier than – even the far proper leaning Postmedia owned Nationwide Put up was essential:
It’s closely reliant on what has been known as a “considerably controversial method” – Dynamic Pricing. This implies all the pieces is costed by means of future projected income primarily based on hoped for financial progress which might rely on a level of certainty.
Thus, this method – stuffed with deregulation, tax cuts, and a ripper mentality in direction of the checks and balances that hold our democracy comparatively wholesome – don’t precisely really feel like secure footing when wanting down the barrel of an financial downturn on account of Trump’s erratic financial insurance policies and tariff threats. However maybe that stage of substance shouldn’t be anticipated from a marketing campaign that constructed its whole id round slogans, false equivalencies and handing out donuts to rally its base.
Cuts VS Income:
Over 50% of the cut-related income sources projected within the Platform come from gutting environmental rules and local weather insurance policies. Contemplating the Local weather Disaster is projected to price (a possible underestimated) $38 TRILLION per 12 months globally by 2050, this appears at finest shortsighted, and at worst, inviting local weather collapse to remain for dinner. Sure – Climateflation is actual. Axing environmental rules to make your income projection desires come true appears extra like finish occasions fascism.
$23.5 billion in financial savings is to be discovered within the firing of impartial consultants whereas closing tax loopholes is projected to search out $12.9 billion over 4 years (a shocking leap from the earlier estimate of $1 billion per 12 months). These commitments appear just a little unusual for a celebration stacked with these exact same company consultants and lobbyists, and whose fundraisers have been filled with company elites.
In the meantime, losses in income from chopping GST on new properties as much as $1.3 million is imagined to be offset by a rise in housing gross sales – which, as soon as once more, isn’t assured. This can be a coverage that the majority advantages rich builders, who must voluntarily cross financial savings to consumers and renters (extremely uncertain this was the subject of dialog at Pierre’s cash-for-access fundraiser held in Sharon Hochfelder’s mansion, who made her fortune investing in rental residences). And if “construct child construct” is a part of the plan to convey down housing prices, we could all be sorely disenchanted as it will probably take as much as 20 years for elevated housing inventory to the touch worth tags.
Additional, economists are questioning the GST rebate coverage for brand spanking new housing, stating what seems to be a flaw within the assumption – particularly that to ensure that the GST reduce to remain on funds, Canada may solely promote 50,000 qualifying properties (extremely implausible). Except Poilievre is banking on the vast majority of properties promoting for MORE than $1.3 million on common, this system’s price may exceed $4 billion.
The mathematics on this coverage plan doesn’t seem like…mathing. Possibly that’s as a result of it was completed with the steering of Tim Sargent, who lately had this to say about bringing a Musk-style DOGE to Canada: “The federal cuts will come so quick and exhausting that critics gained’t know which method to look.” (you’ll be able to take heed to clips of the audio right here)
The involvement of DOGE-bros together with Pierre’s very anti-public funding voting report, fears across the conservatives enjoying a Trump-style haphazard sport of Function on the Canadian financial system really feel fairly actual.
On Staff Rights
Poilievre’s whole ‘Deliver It Dwelling’ marketing campaign has felt just a little like working class cosplay, a rigorously crafted picture of ”the anti-establishment champion of working folks.” This picture has clashed together with his lengthy historical past of voting towards sturdy unions and pro-worker insurance policies whereas voting for payments likel C-377 and C-525, which tried to bury unions in forms and make it more durable for employees to type a union of their very own. Poilievre has additionally lengthy been a proponent of bringing the US-style “proper to work” laws to Canada, which regardless of its title, is extra pro-boss and fewer pro-worker.
All of that is suspiciously overlooked of the Conservative plan.
Poilievre has additionally spent the final two years lamenting “bloated” authorities forms. Within the plan itself, he guarantees to “reduce the fats, however not the frontline service however doesn’t lay out a technique for a way precisely that can play out.
They do, nonetheless, say they are going to axe the post-secondary training requirement for presidency workers, maybe a shout out to Pierre’s infamous contempt for “consultants” (his assertion that the “widespread persons are the consultants” echoes Musk’s declaration that the general public is “the media now.”). Whereas making training a barrier to entry is a type of classism, the answer could be to offer common public post-secondary training – to not delete it from public service totally.
On The Setting
Final month when Pierre Poilievre introduced he would do all the pieces Large Oil needed – he wasn’t kidding. In relation to Local weather Change on this plan, the surroundings is left to fend for itself:
The Conservative plan says goodbye to carbon pricing, clear gasoline rules, emission caps, zero-emission automobile mandates and clear power rules. He has additionally dedicated to axing the Industrial Carbon Tax, regardless of being the major driver of air pollution reductions below the present local weather plan.
The Conservatives would additionally repeal Invoice C-69, Canada’s essential environmental impression evaluation legal guidelines, doing completely no favours to struggling plant and animal species. No options are given, no new targets are set and no point out of Canada’s present Worldwide commitments.
And who needs extra single-use plastic? The Conservatives! Pierre proudly held up a loaf of bread wrapped in plastic at a current press convention to announce he’ll FREE THE STRAWS from oppressive Liberal ban on single-use plastics – an obsession solely rivaled by Donald Trump who signed govt order to “Make American Straws Nice Once more” as a result of the paper ones “explode.”
All this would possibly clarify why current analysis predicts a Conservative led authorities would end in 800m tonnes added to Canada’s emissions by 2035. And in case you heard echoes of Drill Child Drill in your head when you had been studying this, that might be as a result of the Conservative method to handing “shovel prepared zones” over to large trade donors is Simply Like Trump.
On Social Justice, Human Rights and Democracy
Right here’s the place issues appear to get actually Trumpy.
For many who have been tuning out for legitimate psychological well being causes, right here’s the coles notes: Trump promised to “finish woke” in Universities by denying them funding except they conformed to his calls for (silencing protest on campus, chopping DEI applications and staying away from an inventory of key phrases and analysis topics that are actually banned – a promise he has saved!). Pierre Poilievre was clearly wanting over his shoulder throughout that math take a look at as a result of right here we now have an eerily related coverage:
The battle on supposed left-wing media bias (which, shock! Doesn’t truly exist in legacy media OR on-line media) is a key far proper propaganda technique.
Trump has additionally used his assaults on Universities as an excuse to deport college students who participated in pro-Palistinian protests on campus – a sentiment that Pierre has mirrored in his dedication to take away law-breaking visa holders:
Pierre’s “powerful on crime” stance is additional flushed out within the dedication to jail folks for longer durations of time and introduce a 3 strikes legislation which has been proven to not solely price much more, however may result in increased charges of murder. Seems, throwing folks in jail doesn’t cut back crime and it additionally doesn’t resolve habit, however he hasn’t let these pesky consultants get in the way in which of claiming he’ll use the However Clause to override constitution rights to make it occur: “We’ll make them constitutional utilizing no matter instruments the Structure permits me to make use of to make them constitutional. I believe you realize precisely what I imply. They may occur and they’ll keep in place.” (supply)
For a celebration so obsessive about ladies’s organic clocks, ladies are solely talked about 4 occasions on this coverage platform. Three of those mentions mimic the transphobic hatred that Trump made a cornerstone of his first days in workplace making an attempt to maintain folks out of loos, sports activities and different establishments.
The opposite point out comes within the type of yet one more reminder that the celebration “gained’t contact abortion rights” – virtually just like the repetition is supposed to behave as a Males in Black Neuralizer to make 50% of the inhabitants overlook Pierre’s and the Social gathering’s lengthy historical past with anti-abortion measures. A historical past that makes the specter of utilizing the However Clause all of the extra ominous.
Pierre once more copies Trump’s homework on the 10 for 1 regulation govt order put ahead in January. Maybe going for a much less Orwellian look, he introduced it all the way down to a extra refined two for one deal: for each new regulation the Conservatives write, they are going to take away two. As a result of that’s positively how issues work (willy nilly deregulation has labored so nicely prior to now for corporations like Boeing, proper?).
Pierre takes one other web page from Trump’s anti-Globalization playbook by saying he’ll cease funding UNRWA, the one group offering significant support to Palestinian refugees all over the world.
And no right-wing platform could be full with out demanding new residents pledge their allegiance to the Conservative’s reworked Canada First pledge (which for some could convey again undesirable recollections about that point Pierre Poilievre supported the illegal Niqab Ban).
This can be a platform that reiterates Poilievre’s whole marketing campaign, so related in its speaking factors to Donald Trump that it fed a wave of Nationalism even Quebec may get behind. It appears the Conservatives misplaced the Progressive a part of their title someplace between absorbing the Canadian Alliance and Stephen Harper becoming a member of the IDU (a platform devoted to serving to its members elect far proper governments). As The Tyee reported a number of months again, Canada is in a battle for its life.
After reviewing the Conservative platform, our reply to this name is identical immediately because it’s been for the final three months: Don’t Trump Canada.
