Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has released his party’s costed platform, which Poilievre says includes an estimated $75 billion in tax cuts and $35 billion in new programs over the next four years.
Poilievre claims that the Conservative platform will also save Canadians more than $56 billion between 2025-2029.
Putting in place their programs will also require the Conservative government to carry a projected deficit of $31 billion this year.
According to information in the Conservatives’ 30-page platform, it takes into account $20 billion in revenue gained from implementing U.S. counter tariffs.
It also calculates economic growth based on the scrapping of programs such as clean electricity regulations, mandatory Electric Vehicle sales target and the elimination of the carbon tax for industry and residents.
Speaking in front of reporters with candidates and supporters behind him, Poilievre said that a Conservative government would cut the “Liberal deficit by 70 per cent” by cutting back on ‘bureaucracy, consultants, foreign aid to dictators and terrorists."
He says he will slash money for special interest groups and unleash “half a trillion dollars of extra economic growth by unlocking the power of resources in home building.”
The platform, called “Change,” promises to cut the lowest personal income tax rate from 15 per cent to 12.75 per cent -- meaning the average Canadian worker earning $57,000, for example, will save $900, with dual-income families saving $1,800 a year.
The party says a Conservative government would gain $12.8 billion in new revenue from increased homebuilding over four years, and collect almost $1 billion from repealing the Impact Assessment Act that the Liberal government passed in 2019 to assess impacts of major projects on federal lands.
Poilievre also announced that as prime minister, he will allow Canadians to contribute an extra $5,000 a year to Tax-Free Savings Accounts if they invest in Canadian companies.
The party has also pledged to commit billions of dollars to defence, by building three military bases in the Arctic and buying new aircraft for surveillance.
In response to a survey question by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, Poilievre said that his government would also commit to meeting the NATO target of spending two per cent of GDP on defence by 2030. The Conservative platform adds an additional $17 billion to defence spending between 2025-2029.
Canada currently spends 1.37 per cent of GDP on defence or approximately $41 billion annually.
On Monday, the party also announced a plan to build 2.3 million new homes. This is on top of an earlier promise to axe the GST from the purchase of new homes under $1.3 million dollars.
As part of the party’s plan to fight crime, Poilievre also said that his government would pay for drug treatment programs for 50,000 people.
Poilievre said that his government would also cut the use of consultants by $10 billion.
The Conservatives say they would pay for their programs by “trimming the bureaucracy, not services.” They would streamline the federal public service through natural attrition and retirement and only replace two-thirds of departing employees.
The Conservatives also promised to pass a Taxpayer Protection Act which would ban new or higher federal taxes without asking taxpayers first in a referendum.
Liberal reaction
Liberal Leader Mark Carney’s spending initiatives primarily target Donald Trump’s trade war, while Poilievre has continued his focus on cost of living measures.
In reaction to the Conservative platform on Tuesday, Carney said it “really only confirms what we already knew. That Pierre Poilievre has no plan to stand up to President Trump.”
“These numbers are a joke. We aren’t in a joke. We are in the worst crisis of our lives,” said Carney during a campaign stop in Quebec City. “It takes a serious government. It takes a serious plan. It takes a plan that delivers today. It takes a plan that delivers investment. It takes a plan that grows this economy, stands up to Trump and moves forward with the brilliance of the workers here and across Quebec and across Canada.”
The Tories were the last major party to release their platform. They did so one day after the advance polls closed on the weekend. Some analysts say the Conservative decision to disclose their platform later may have missed an opportunity to appeal to voters as they gathered with their families during the Easter long weekend. Elections Canada says a record number of Canadians cast early ballots.
