Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says his party will focus on rising crime rates, cost-of-living issues, travel delays, and increased government contracts to consulting firm McKinsey when Parliament reconvenes on Jan. 30.
“What’s happening in our country?” Poilievre said. “Seriously, look around you. Crime is raging out of control in our streets. Our people are desperate that they'll have to lose their homes because of rising inflation and interest rates the government promised would never happen.”
“When he [Poilievre] says that Canada is broken, that’s where we draw the line,” Trudeau said, adding, “I don’t accept Canadians and politicians that talk down on our country.”
Poilievre outlined in his Jan. 27 caucus address some of the issues that Conservatives would pursue in the coming months, highlighting federal contracts awarded to McKinsey.
Crime Rates
Poilievre also spoke about rising crime rates, particularly in Toronto, which made numerous headlines while Parliament has been adjourned since mid-December 2022.“Crime now rages out of control,” Poilievre said, citing several Toronto police reports from December of random attacks around the city, some of which were fatal.
The Conservative leader said Trudeau and his government are responsible for the recently-amended federal criminal code and the high rates of illegal firearms being smuggled over Canada’s border from the United States.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland recently said the federal government will cut some of its planned spending items if it turns out there is “less fiscal room” in 2023, but Trudeau said a day later that his government is “not going to slow down.”
“We’ve done a lot to deliver for Canadians over the past few months,” he said.