Gatineau, Quebec - Tonight, Justin Trudeau made it clear that the Liberals are the only team to finish the fight against COVID-19 and move forward for everyone.
"You're going to hear radically different perspectives and approaches on how we should finish the pandemic, on how we can build back better," said Justin Trudeau, Leader of the Liberal Party. "You deserve a choice because the government you elect will make these decisions this fall. Not in a year, not in two. On climate change, vaccinations, gun control. You have an important choice to make and I look forward to continuing to work together."
Justin Trudeau spoke on how the Liberal team was there to support Canadians throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, including through the CERB and Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy, and how they will continue to be there as we finish the fight against the virus. He committed to ensuring all eligible Canadians get vaccinated, building a stronger public health care system, and keeping seniors safe with better long-term care. Vaccines are the best way for Canadians to return to normal life and avoid future lockdowns, but the Bloc and the Conservatives won’t support proof of vaccine credentials to keep Canadians safe. Erin O’Toole won’t even ensure his candidates are vaccinated, he would let unvaccinated Canadians travel on a train or plane, and instead wants to bring more privatization to Canada’s health care system.
The Liberal leader also recommitted to supporting Canadian families as we build a better Canada. With new investments that will create hundreds of thousands of new child care spaces across the country, including 37,000 new child care spaces in Quebec, the Liberal leader is the only one to better support families. While Erin O’Toole wants to scrap our plan to create more child care spaces across the country, the Liberals will remain focused on helping Canadians get ahead.
Trudeau also continued to press Erin O’Toole on his plan on repealing the Liberal ban on assault weapons as clearly stated on page 90 of his platform. Now he’s lying to Canadians and using coded language to tell the gun lobby that he’s on their side. While Erin O’Toole continues to make it clear that he would let military-style assault weapons back into our communities, Justin Trudeau is focused on strengthening gun control laws and ensuring our kids are safe.
The Liberal leader also outlined his plan to protect Canada’s healthy environment by reaching our goal of net-zero emissions by 2050 and ensuring that our fight against climate change creates new, good quality jobs across the country. Erin O’Toole wants to roll back our environmental regulations and take us back to the inaction of the Harper years. Canadians can also see that Yves-François Blanchet is not serious about protecting the environment and Jagmeet Singh doesn’t have a credible plan.
Trudeau also spoke to the importance of continuing on the path of reconciliation and committed to continuing to work with Indigenous partners and communities to create lasting change, especially by closing the gaps that still exist in areas like health care and housing, and by continuing to end long-term drinking water advisories for Indigenous communities across Canada.
Unlike the Conservatives, Justin Trudeau confirmed that he will always support Francophones communities across the country.
"Mr. O'Toole refused to tell Canadians what he wanted to do on gun control,” said Mr. Trudeau. “He caters to special interest groups, like he did with vaccines, like he did when saying he was pro choice – but 80% of his caucus voted against women's choices. Like he does with climate and bringing us back to the Harper years. He's offering flimsy leadership and even with his costed platform, we see he's not investing in Canadians. He can’t be trusted."
