The Latest: Four federal leaders face off in English language leaders’ debate

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This article was published 17/04/2025 (221 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MONTREAL – The English language leaders’ debate got underway in Montreal at 7 p.m. EDT.

It’s the second of two national debates that include Liberal Leader Mark Carney, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet. The French debate took place Wednesday.

Here’s the latest (all times eastern):

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9:15 p.m.

Michel Cormier, executive director of the Leaders’ Debates Commission, says the post-debate scrums have been cancelled because the commission doesn’t feel it can guarantee a proper environment. The announcement came after heated exchanges between representatives of the right-wing media group Rebel News and other journalists in the media room.

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9 p.m. 

The debate ends.

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8:59 p.m.

Poilievre says he was born to a single mother and adopted by schoolteachers who raised him to believe in the Canadian promise. “That promise feels broken today,” he says. He says the Canadian promise can be restored with hope. 

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8:57 p.m.

Blanchet says Quebecers are different from Canadians but can be economic partners. “Let’s have a voice chosen by and for Quebecers” to be an equal ally with Canada in facing down Donald Trump, he says.

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8:56 p.m.

In Carney’s closing statement, he says Canada is facing the biggest crisis of our lifetimes. He says the United States is “trying to break us so they can own us” and promises to stand up to Donald Trump.

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8:55 p.m.

In a closing statement, Singh says NDP MPs have been able to help bring in dental care and pharmacare and promises the NDP will continue the fight to defend the things that make people proud to be Canadian.

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8:52 p.m.

The party leaders are asked to share their biggest regrets from the campaign. Blanchet says the leaders should have started sooner to create the environment for a partnership deal to allow Quebec and Canada to stand up to Trump. Singh says he wishes he could have met more people while campaigning. Carney says the same. Poilievre becomes emotional when he talks about meeting people at rallies, and says he hasn’t forgotten them.

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8:40 p.m.

Given his chance to question Carney, Poilievre asks him to “look people in the eye and apologize” to people who suffered as a result of the Liberal government’s inflationary policies. Carney says Trudeau isn’t here and he should be judged by his actions. Carney also says inflation was under two per cent when he was governor of Bank of Canada.

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8:32 p.m.

In a section called “leader’s choice,” Singh challenges Carney on Brookfield, which he calls “one of the biggest tax dodgers in Canada” and accuses him of cutting taxes for millionaires. Carney says he’s on the side of Canadians and that his private sector career has given him experiences that will allow him to serve in a moment of crisis.

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8:27 p.m.

The leaders are asked what role Canada can play in ending the crisis in the Middle East and Gaza. Poilievre says Hamas and terror sponsors in Iran must be defeated. Singh says the treatment of Palestinians in Gaza has been “disgusting” and calls the situation there a “genocide.” Carney says Canada needs to work with international partners to create “maximum pressure” for a ceasefire and a “viable and free” Palestinian state alongside Israel.

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8:20 p.m.

Blanchet asks Carney if he will work with other parties if he doesn’t get a majority government, and suggests all leaders meet one week after the election to start dealing with the current crisis. Carney says he’s willing to meet and says whoever leads will have to work with the provinces, labour and Indigenous groups.

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8:15 p.m.

On the topic of leading in a crisis, Poilievre says Canada should continue to support Ukraine. Blanchet says Canada must support Ukraine but also the civilians of Gaza, and must destroy Hamas. A moment later, Carney says Canada must continue to support Ukraine through coalitions with allies and open trade.

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7:56 p.m.

The section on energy and climate change begins with a question about pipelines. Singh stresses the climate crisis, while Poilievre says he would approve natural gas projects that would help reduce emissions abroad. Carney says Canada needs to identify projects of national interest while ensuring Indigenous partners are included from the start.

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7:55 p.m.

Each leader is asked about the biggest security threat facing Canada. Poilievre says it’s rampant crime. Carney says it’s China. Singh points to illegal guns, drugs coming across the border and service cuts. Blanchet says both Quebec and Canada are dependent on the United States.

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7:42 p.m. 

Poilievre is asked about his proposal to use the notwithstanding clause to allow judges to impose consecutive sentences on multiple murders. He says he will uphold the Charter right to life, liberty and security that multiple murderers violate. Carney says that one of the core responsibilities of the federal government is to defend the fundamental rights of Canadians. Blanchet challenges Carney on his criticism of the clause, which has been used by Quebec in recent years.

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7:37 p.m.

On to the topic of national security now. Blanchet says Quebec’s borders are not being dealt with in an orderly way. Carney says there is a problem with guns coming over the border and a gun industry that is “continually coming up with new forms of assault rifles.” Poilievre is asked whether his tough-on-crime agenda would lead to overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system; he says he’s concerned by the fact that Indigenous people are disproportionately victims of crime.

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7:27 p.m.

It’s Blanchet’s turn to attack Carney. He says Carney claims to be very different from Trudeau but has to prove he’s better. He says that while Carney claims to be a great negotiator, he wonders what he has negotiated apart from tax havens in Bermuda or the Cayman Islands, and challenges him to reveal his assets.

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7:24 p.m.

On affordability, Singh says he was the only leader to propose a GST holiday to make life more affordable and pivots to attack Poilievre, who he says voted against it. 

He then turns to Carney and asks him why he believes giving capital gains relief to millionaires is a good idea, while helping people afford bills and groceries by cutting the GST is a bad one. Poilievre, offered the first chance to respond, criticizes Carney instead.

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7:18 p.m.

The next topic is affordability and the cost of living. Poilievre is asked how he will meet housing targets. Poilievre says housing costs have doubled during the “lost Liberal decade” and talks about his plan, which includes cutting sales tax on new homes. Carney says Canada needs a fundamentally different approach to build housing at the fastest pace since the Second World War. Carney says he and Poilievre agree on reducing tax for first-time homebuyers, but that he’s focused on increasing supply. 

7:11 

In a first direct challenge to the race’s perceived front-runner, Pierre Poilievre says Mark Carney has supported policies that have weakened Canada’s economy over the last decade, and accused him of blocking pipelines in Canada that have given Donald Trump a near-monopoly over Canada’s energy. Carney responds that his record is a month long, and says in that time he managed to get an agreement with all the provinces and territories to have “one Canadian economy” instead of 13. Singh jumps in and says Carney’s priorities have been to cut taxes for millionaires, referring to reversing the proposed hike in the capital gains inclusion rate. 

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7:10 p.m.

Moderator Steve Paikin begins by asking about negotiations with the United States. Carney says the starting point has to be one of strength, and says he has a clear plan to diversify Canada’s market to like-minded countries. Poilievre says we need to counter U.S. tariffs with our own and make it clear we’ll always be sovereign and independent. Asked if we can trust the U.S. to work with us on matters such as Arctic sovereignty and defence, Singh says Canada needs to make decisions in the country’s best interest. Blanchet says Quebec’s economy has specific challenges and needs its own voice in negotiations. 

7 p.m.

The English debate is underway.

6 p.m.

Mark Carney’s bus pulls in. The Conservative supporters shout “Brookfield!” while Liberals chant the leader’s name. Carney steps behind the bus to greet his supporters, mostly out of sight of reporters. He then waves on the way into the building but doesn’t address the media.

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5:50 p.m.

Jagmeet Singh arrives. Some supporters spill out of his bus ahead of him, carrying signs and chanting his name. Singh comes out with his wife and high-fives them before stopping and telling reporters he’s here to tell voters how the NDP will fight for them.

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5:41 p.m.

Yves-François Blanchet’s bus pulls in. The Carney and Poilievre supporters are still chanting their leaders’ names — Blanchet ignores them and heads over to the small group of Bloc supporters at the end. He stops and tells reporters that Quebecers will be best served during negotiations with the Trump administration if they elect people who represent their interests.

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5:30 p.m.

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Pierre Poilievre is the first to arrive. His supporters chant his name and “bring it home” as his bus pulls in, while Liberal supporters try to drown them out by calling out, “Carney! Carney!” Poilievre and his wife Anaida get off the bus holding hands; he turns to the crowd and flashes a thumbs-up. He speaks briefly in French on the way in, saying voters have an important choice to make.

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5:05 p.m.

A few dozen supporters are lining the barricades ahead of the leaders’ arrival at Radio-Canada’s Montreal headquarters for the English-language debate. Liberal supporters are waving Canadian flags and chanting Carney’s name. There are also Conservative supporters in blue-and-white hockey-style jerseys and some people with Quebec flags in front of a Bloc Québécois sign.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 17, 2025