PC leadership hopeful criticized for homeless comments

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This article was published 07/02/2025 (266 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Tory leadership candidate Wally Daudrich is in hot water for a joke he made about the homeless at a rally this week.

Daudrich, who runs a polar bear ecotour in Churchill, made the quip minutes into his speech at a rally at the Park West Inn in Winnipeg’s Charleswood neighbourhood.

“We have a homeless crisis here in Winnipeg,” Daudrich told supporters in a video posted on social media. “I always say where I come from in Churchill, we don’t have any homeless people. Anybody take a guess why?

“When there are serious repercussions for a bad lifestyle, people smarten up very quickly. So my plan is to import 10 polar bears and let them go in front of the (Manitoba legislature).”

End Homelessness Winnipeg called the remarks“hurtful” and “deeply damaging.”

“Such statements perpetuate harmful stereotypes, diminish the struggles of those experiencing homelessness, and ignore the complex, systemic issues that lead people into housing insecurity,” the non-profit said in a release on Friday.

In an interview Friday, Daudrich said he won’t apologize.

He said homelessness is primarily caused by drug addiction, and he’s against drug addiction.

“Obviously being out on the streets has serious repercussions and that is the point of the comment,” he said.

“It’s a joke. There’s no apology. I’ll probably say it again next week.”

The longtime PC board member is running against Fort Whyte MLA Obby Khan to become the next leader of the provincial Tories, who have not had a permanent leader since former premier Heather Stefanson resigned in 2024.

Khan issued a statement about the comment.

“I must condemn my opponent for his callous attack on the homeless community in Manitoba. His sick joke does not represent my views as a sitting PC MLA or of other Manitobans concerned about addressing this very serious issue,” he wrote.

End Homelessness said poverty is a result of the lack of affordable housing, mental health challenges, and trauma, among other inequities.

“The First Nations teaching of humility, represented by the wolf, reminds us to approach life with respect, listen with open hearts, and acknowledge that we are all interconnected,” said CEO Jason Whitford. “These teachings are universal, transcending cultures and faiths, calling on us to uplift others rather than bring them down.”

The organization said Indigenous communities, in particular, continue to face the impacts of colonialism, including housing discrimination and intergenerational trauma.

“These issues require solutions, not ridicule.”

— with files from The Canadian Press

scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca