In a confrontation more acrimonious than the usual bland, the leaders of Canada’s three main federal parties faced each other in heated debate Thursday night in Calgary.
The event was promoted as an opportunity for the Conservative leader Stephen Harper, New Democratic leader Tom Mulcair and Liberal leader Justin Trudeau to promote their economic platforms and agendas.
Harper, who is seeking his fourth straight mandate as prime minister, pitched a stay-the-course low-tax program with balanced budgets as the safe road to prosperity.
Trudeau said he would invest in the future, even if that means three straight deficit budgets.
Mulcair, attempting to take the middle ground, said it was time for the NDP to take power after decades of alternating between Liberal and Conservative governments.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has predicted Canada’s growth this year will be 1.1 per cent, down 0.4 of a percentage point.
Public opinion polls suggest that the three parties are in a virtual tie in popular support–about 30 per cent each–as Canadians head to the Oct. 19 federal election.
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