Elbows Up, Results Down!

“Elbows up.”

That was Prime Minister Mark Carney’s message to Canadians. It was meant to project strength against Washington and reassure the country that he could handle President Donald Trump.

Canadians should judge that promise with the answer to one simple question: has the Prime Minister’s approach actually made Canada stronger?

Since Carney took office, tariffs have escalated, negotiations remain unresolved, businesses are holding back investment, and a recent KPMG survey reveals that 42 per cent of Canadian manufacturing companies have either already moved production to the United States or are considering doing so.

Instead of putting forward a strategy that delivers results, the Liberals have repeatedly caved. Carney’s elbows are supposedly up, but the results are discouraging. His approach is doing more harm than good, and the consequences are hitting close to home—especially in Lethbridge.

Lethbridge has far more at stake than most. In 2023, businesses in our region exported more than $2 billion worth of goods to the United States, accounting for a staggering 91.7 per cent of all local merchandise exports and nearly one-fifth of our total regional GDP. It is no surprise the Canadian Chamber of Commerce ranked Lethbridge 10th out of 41 Canadian cities for vulnerability to U.S. tariffs.

These figures are not abstract. They represent family farms, processing plants, and manufacturers across southern Alberta, alongside hardworking people whose paycheques depend on reliable access to our largest customer. The United States is not just another market for us; it buys our beef, canola, potatoes, and manufactured goods. When that access becomes uncertain, the shockwaves hit farm gates, factory floors, and family budgets directly.

President Trump’s tariffs belong to his administration, but Canadians rightly expect their government to prepare for foreseeable risks and defend our national interests.

A strong government would make restoring free trade with the United States its top priority. Yet, under the Carney Liberals, tariffs have worsened, and major concessions have been handed out for nothing in return. Recently, the government agreed to hand over half of the Gordie Howe International Bridge’s net revenues to a U.S.-controlled fund for its first 15 years—surrendering revenue from a bridge Canada fully financed.

To make matters worse, the Bank of Canada warns that persistent trade uncertainty has left business investment flat as companies indefinitely freeze expansions and equipment purchases.

Real strength does not mean picking fights for political applause. It means knowing what Canada needs, defending it tactfully, and securing results. Canada must restore stable, tariff-free access to the United States and give businesses the certainty to invest. That is impossible if Carney continues to needlessly antagonize President Trump, as he has done on multiple occasions, including during his speech at Davos.

Serious economic challenges require serious negotiation, not theatrics.

While economic diversification is a vital long-term goal, it cannot become an excuse to neglect the customer buying nearly 92 per cent of Lethbridge’s exports today. New markets cannot replace American demand overnight, nor can the necessary infrastructure be built quickly enough to protect producers facing tariffs right now.

A responsible government treats our relationship with our largest customer as an economic necessity. Tough talk may generate headlines, but it doesn’t move trucks across the border. Canada’s trade policy must be grounded in the livelihoods at stake—especially in communities like Lethbridge.

When a Prime Minister raises his elbows without a plan, it's everyday Canadians who take the hit.

Bailouts for Insiders, Burdens for Canadians

There are two realities in Canada today.

In one Canada, wealthy insiders are protected by an elitist Liberal government that looks after its own.

In the other Canada, everyday Canadians are lining up at food banks, struggling to pay rent, and watching the dream of home ownership slip further out of reach.

Under the Carney Liberals, the message is clear: if you’re not in the inner circle, you’re on your own.

Instead of helping the Canadian public, the Liberal Government has chosen to help wealthy developers by putting taxpayers on the hook for unsold luxury condos—all while Canadians struggle with the cost of living.

The Carney Liberals recently announced they would use taxpayer dollars to purchase more than 2,200 unsold condominium units in British Columbia. Instead of allowing prices to adjust so Canadians can actually afford homes, the government has chosen to protect developers’ profits and make taxpayers pick up the bill.

The Liberals would like to have Canadians believe that it’s one of the fastest ways to increase the supply of housing. But buying existing condos is not building new homes, and it does nothing to get government out of the way so more homes can get built.

Here is the simple truth: it is taking units that developers could not sell at the sky-high prices they wanted and using taxpayer support to rescue them from the consequences of their bad decisions.

That’s not a free market.

The whole point of a market correction is that prices adjust. If developers overbuild expensive condos that buyers cannot afford, the government shouldn’t protect those prices. Bailing out the very people who profit from Canada’s housing crisis does not keep home prices down. In fact, it does the opposite. How is affordability supposed to improve?

Canadians are understandably frustrated that large developers receive government funding while many families struggle to afford housing and make ends meet.

Homeownership is becoming increasingly out of reach for young Canadians, while some seniors are being pushed into extreme housing insecurity, sleeping in Tim Hortons locations or living in tents because they cannot afford a place to live.

Instead of helping the people who need it most by lowering taxes and allowing Canadians to keep more of their hard-earned paycheques, the Liberals are choosing to protect wealthy insiders.

The disconnect is astonishing.

The timing of the proposal has prompted ethical questions. It came after two Liberal fundraisers were held in Vancouver, where attendees paid up to $1,750 to attend a closed-door "Evening with Mark Carney." According to reports, developers attended these events.

Canadians deserve transparency. Which is why, on June 26, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre wrote to the Ethics Committee calling for parliamentary oversight into this issue.

In response to the letter, the Chair of the Ethics Committee, Conservative MP John Brassard, has called for the committee to meet and examine the matter.

Conservatives will continue fighting for answers and holding the Liberal government accountable when its decisions leave everyday Canadians behind.

Unfortunately, the condo bailout is not an isolated incident, but part of a broader pattern of government disconnect from everyday Canadians.

Over and over again, the Liberals have demonstrated that they are out of touch.

While record numbers of Canadians are relying on food banks, Mark Carney spent nearly $1 million on luxury in-flight catering over the past year alone, including fine wines, braised beef, Normandy butter cups, and other premium menu items.

And while many Canadians are feeling hopeless in the midst of price increases, Mark Carney is doubling Justin Trudeau’s deficit and driving up the cost of inflation.

It’s becoming increasingly clear that under the Carney Liberals, there are two Canadas: one for everyday Canadians struggling to get by, and another for wealthy Liberal insiders.

Conservatives reject that vision. We believe in one Canada where the government works for the people, not the privileged few. Where hard work is rewarded, homes are affordable, builders can build, and grocery prices are stable.  

That is the Canada that Conservatives are fighting for.

Why Watching Your Favourite Shows Just Got More Expensive

We all know the feeling of coming home after a long day at work and wanting to unwind by watching our favourite show on Netflix, Crave, or Disney+. For many Canadians, these simple pleasures offer a welcome break from the stresses of everyday life.

Unfortunately, those everyday pleasures just became more expensive because of the Liberals' streaming tax.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), which the Liberal government tasked with implementing the policy, recently decided to increase the levy on online streaming services from 5 to 15 per cent. At a time when Canadians are already struggling with the rising cost of living, this decision will make entertainment less affordable for families across the country.

A few extra dollars per month may not seem like much on its own. But Canadians are being squeezed from every direction. They are paying more for groceries, more for gas, more for housing, and more for electricity. Now they are being asked to pay more to watch their favourite shows or listen to their favourite music.

What makes this decision especially frustrating is how disconnected it seems from the realities many Canadians face.

While families are reviewing household budgets and deciding whether they can still afford a streaming subscription, the Prime Minister spent nearly half a million dollars of taxpayer money on luxury in-flight catering during his first term in office. Reports show those expenses included items such as fine wine, braised beef, Normandy butter cups, and crème brûlée. At a time when Canadians are struggling to make ends meet, that kind of spending is completely out of touch.

The streaming tax is not only costly for consumers—it also discourages investment.

Streaming companies invest in Canada, creating jobs, generating wages, and supporting innovation and economic growth. Earlier this year, Netflix opened a major animation studio in Vancouver, creating hundreds of jobs and bringing significant investment into the Canadian economy.

When Canada becomes a more expensive and heavily regulated place to do business, we risk slowing that momentum and limiting opportunities for Canadian workers and creators.

But the consequences don’t stop at Canada's borders.

The Liberals' streaming tax has also become a major trade irritant with the United States at exactly the wrong time. Canada is approaching an important review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), and American officials have already identified the streaming tax as a significant concern.

At a time when Canada should be focused on strengthening our economic relationship with our largest trading partner, the Liberals are doubling down on a policy that risks creating unnecessary friction and undermining our competitiveness.

That’s why my Conservative colleagues and I recently tabled a motion calling on the Liberal government to reject and eliminate the streaming tax.

Throughout the debate, Liberals insisted the streaming tax wouldn’t affect consumers. Some even called it "imaginary" and accused Conservatives of making it up. They repeatedly told Canadians there was nothing the government could do because the matter was entirely in the hands of the CRTC.

Not surprisingly, Liberals voted against our motion to axe the Netflix tax.

Then, just days later, the government admitted what Conservatives had been saying all along.

In a press release, the government acknowledged that the CRTC's new requirements would impose additional costs on streaming companies and that those costs could ultimately be passed on to Canadian consumers through higher prices. The government also announced that it had instructed the CRTC to review the fee increase.

It turns out the government can direct the CRTC on these matters, despite what Liberals claimed during debate.

By that point, however, the damage had already begun. Spotify and Disney+ had already increased subscription prices.

Even more disappointing is that, while the government now admits Canadians would bear the cost of the streaming tax, it has not addressed the underlying problem. Instead, it announced $600 million in additional subsidies for the cultural sector—money that will ultimately come from taxpayers.

Conservatives support Canadian creators, but not at the expense of families who are already struggling through a Liberal-made recession.

The solution is simple. The Liberals should repeal the Online Streaming Act and eliminate the streaming tax altogether. If they won’t, a Conservative government will.

Canadians deserve a government that lowers costs, encourages investment, helps grow the economy, and allows families to keep more of their hard-earned money instead of paying more for yet another Liberal tax.

Canadians should not have to choose between covering life's necessities and enjoying the simple comforts that make daily life a little easier.