Poilievre slams Carney’s budget speech as “counterfeit”

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre tore into Prime Minister Mark Carney’s national address on Wednesday, accusing the Liberal leader of delivering a speech filled with slogans but devoid of action.

Source: Facebook (Mark Carney)

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre tore into Prime Minister Mark Carney’s national address on Wednesday, accusing the Liberal leader of delivering a speech filled with slogans but devoid of action to reverse what he called a “decade of decline” for working Canadians.

In a press conference on Parliament Hill, Poilievre said Carney’s pledge to balance the operating budget in three years offers little comfort to a public already paying the price for Liberal policies.

“The Prime Minister promised more of the same — more suffering, more slogans, more bureaucracy, more waste,” he told reporters.

“He didn’t reverse a single policy that caused this pain,” Poilievre said. “After nine years of inflation, housing hell, violent crime, and division, he came out and promised three more years before he even balances the budget — and that’s just the operating side.”

The splitting of budgets from the operating budget and capital budget is something that Conservative MP Michael Cooper described as a “creative accounting” in order to hide the deficit of government spending.

Poilievre also accused Carney of continuing to subsidize bureaucracy while young Canadians face what he described as a generational crisis.

“They’ve lost their paycheques to inflation. They’ve lost their homes to higher mortgage payments. And now they’re losing hope,” he said.

He took direct aim at Carney’s credibility, saying: “He says the right things, but does the opposite. That’s not Conservative. That’s counterfeit.”

Poilievre also criticized the government’s approach to trade and industry, noting that no resolution was offered on tariffs or stalled energy projects.

“The auto jobs are still gone. The housing is still unaffordable. There was no mention of restoring Canadian energy independence.”

When asked by a reporter whether he saw any parts of Carney’s speech as constructive, Poilievre responded bluntly.

“No. If he wanted to be constructive, he’d reverse the bad decisions. Instead, he’s doubling down,” he said.

Poilievre emphasized that the Conservative Party would not support the coming budget unless the government reversed its key economic and regulatory policies. “We’re not here to rubber-stamp slogans. We’re here to deliver results — to bring homes, paycheques and safety back to Canadians.”

The Liberal government is set to release its first full budget under Carney’s leadership on November 4.

Poilievre met with Carney on Wednesday to demand an “affordable budget for an affordable life.”