Canadian elections headed for a photograph finish Monday with liberal prime minister Justin Trudeau, who is seeking a 3rd term, threatened by a robust challenge from rookie conservative leader Erin O’Toole. Trudeau called the snap election hoping to parlay a smooth Covid-19 vaccine rollout — among the simplest within the world — into a replacement mandate to steer the nation’s pandemic exit, without having to believe opposition party support to pass his agenda. But the competition , after a bumpy five weeks of campaigning, appears set for a repeat of the close 2019 election that resulted within the one-time wonder boy of Canadian politics clinging to power, yet losing his majority in parliament.
WHY NOW?
Since 2019, Trudeau has only commanded a minority in parliament, leaving him hooked in to other parties to control . Trudeau argues the pandemic has changed Canada like war Two did and Canadians should now choose who they need to form important decisions for many years to return .
Analysts say financial markets don’t appear overly worried about the fiscal implications of either promise although the stocks of bank and insurance company could suffer after Trudeau promised a replacement windfall tax on their profits.
VACCINE MANDATES
The Liberal government has introduced COVID-19 vaccine mandates. During the campaign, Trudeau has been abused and heckled by people opposing the move and says his Conservative rival is taking his cues from the crowds. O’Toole opposes vaccine mandates, including for his own candidates, and says he prefers frequent testing.
CHILDCARE
Employment of girls has plummeted because of COVID-19. The Liberals are promising to spend up to C$30 billion over five years to line up a long-promised C$10 each day national childcare program. The Conservatives say they’re going to cancel those deals and instead offer tax credits of up to C$6,000 a year to assist buy daycare.
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
Housing prices have soared about 70% since Trudeau took office. he’s promising to create , preserve, or repair 1.4 million homes over subsequent four years, among other measures. The Conservatives would boost supply by building 1,000,000 homes over three years and loosening some mortgage requirements.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Forest fires in western Canada and a drought in crop-growing areas are focusing attention on global climate change . The Liberals promise more aggressive emissions cuts than the Conservatives, who are major advocates of the oil and gas industry.
Trudeau has struggled to elucidate why an early election during a worsening fourth wave of COVID-19 was an honest idea. Conservative leader Erin O’Toole consistently accuses the Liberal leader of putting Canadians in harm’s way for private ambition. People also seem to be tiring of Trudeau, who carries the luggage of getting governed for 6 years.
After Trudeau called the election, his hefty poll lead vanished. Recent surveys point to a decent race during which he might retain power with another minority.
Trudeau said on Sunday only his Liberals could end the COVID-19 pandemic and accused O’Toole of taking the incorrect approach.
WHAT ARE the most ISSUES?
To tackle the pandemic the Liberals ran up a record debt of C$1 trillion ($785.7 billion) and pushed budget deficits to highs not seen since war Two. within the campaign they promised another C$78 billion in new spending over five years. O’Toole says he will balance the books within a decade without making cuts.
