Pipelines, promises and platforms: Leaders clash over policy, prose in French debate

OTTAWA — Federal party leaders laid out their priorities and challenged each other’s policies and word choices during the French-language debate Wednesday.

These were some of the key exchanges:

The zingers

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet mocked his opponents for their mathematical manipulations. “I call it Harry Potter financial breakdowns, Harry Potter budgets — you have to do magic. We want to allocate more money (and) we want to cut at the same time,” he said.

Later, when Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said that economic sovereignty requires a pipeline that crosses Canada, Blanchet said it was unrealistic to fret about the Americans cutting off energy trade with Canada, calling it “a scarecrow that doesn’t exist.”

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh attacked Blanchet for voting against measures he argued would have helped Quebecers. “You have shown that you are as useless as the monarchy,” he said — an insult that has more bite in Quebec.

Show me the money

“It should be noted that none of you provided a financial summary, nor costed out your promises,” moderator Patrice Roy told the leaders.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney said he’d have a platform out this weekend, while Poilievre said his party’s costed platform is just days away. Roy urged them again at the end of the debate to follow through.

“I hope that citizens will have the financial breakdowns as soon as possible, so that we can verify the costs of your promises,” he said.

A pipeline of consensus

While Carney and Poilievre don’t agree on much, both of them spoke of energy exports as a matter of national sovereignty.

Carney said Canada needs to produce more oil in order to cut oil imports, “especially our imports from the United States, a country that now threatens us.”

Poilievre argued there’s a risk to having oil and gas flow between Alberta and Quebec through U.S. states. “I am in favour of economic and energy sovereignty, and that requires a pipeline across Canada,” he said.

But the Conservative leader was more circumspect when asked whether he would impose a pipeline that was strongly opposed by Quebecers or Indigenous people.

“We shouldn’t assume that, because the majority of Quebecers want a pipeline according to the polls,” he said.

Déguelasse

Singh took Poilievre to task after the Conservative leader linked the United Nations agency serving Palestinians, UNRWA, to terrorism. Singh called the statement “déguelasse” — a strong term for “disgusting.”

“It was unacceptable as a comment. It promotes hatred. It is not acceptable to do that,” he said.

Last year, UNRWA fired a small number of staff in the Gaza Strip who were accused of supporting Hamas in its October 2023 attack on Israel. The Liberals paused funding to UNRWA but later restored it, calling the agency indispensable to providing life-saving aid to Gazans.

Cars and beer cans

Blanchet accused Carney of favouring Ontario’s industries over Quebec’s in his response to American tariffs.

“Two billion (dollars) for automotive right off the hop — bing bang, two billion (for) automotive,” he said.

When Carney argued that Quebec’s aluminum industry is being supported through his trade policy, Blanchet shot back that Canada’s counter-tariffs are harmful because Quebec companies make aluminum for “American beer cans” that Canadians import under a tariff.

Don’t cut my mic

Roy cut off Singh’s microphone during the debate’s section on identity issues, after he kept raising the issue of health care. Roy gave Singh a three-second countdown before ordering the microphone cut, saying he needed to speed things up before moving to the next section.

Singh called out Roy three minutes later, saying it was “unfair” of him to cut off him off numerous times while discussing health care.

“It is a question of identity in our country. I am passionate on the question of health,” Singh said. He pointed out that he spoke less than the other three leaders, according to the timer on the wall.

“Every time I tried to discuss it, Monsieur Roy cut me off and stopped me,” Singh said, using more than a minute of his allocated time.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 16, 2025.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press