There was a small crowd in attendance at the People’s Party of Canada event on September 23 in Assiniboia at Club 55 because of the harvest season, but the mood was generally upbeat.
Norm Nordgulen, previously a Conservative nominee to replace David Anderson, introduced Lee Harding, who is running as the PPC candidate in Cypress Hills-Grasslands. “People are asking me, if you ran for the Conservatives, why are you supporting this?” Nordgulen said before introducing Harding. “Well, my platform is the same,” Nordgulen replied then outlined the similarities the PPC shared with his Conservative ideals, adding both he and Harding were impressed with Bernier, when the PPC leader spoke in Moose Jaw in July.
Lee Harding also had ties with the Conservative Party. Harding had even served as David Anderson’s assistant in 2010. “I was a Conservative and I enjoyed that experience,” Harding said. But he is convinced he will change the Conservative stronghold of Cypress Hills-Grasslands into a PPC riding. “I really think we can win this riding,” Lee stated. “You have to be more than just not Trudeau. We are the answer to Trudeau destroying Canada.”
Harding became attracted to the Maxime Bernier’s PPC movement, because he believed the Conservatives were becoming irrelevant. “I found that the Conservatives were being very cautious in their approach.”
Harding further said he has great respect for Bernier, because the leader of the PPC reveres individual freedoms. Moreover, Harding is impressed with Bernier’s ideas about equalization payments. In particular, the former Conservative cabinet member wants to settle the issue of equalization payments for his home province of Quebec. “Quebec is the province that received the largest amount of money, $10 billion out of a total of $18 billion this year. But that’s because it has a much larger population. The other four actually get more money per capita and are even more dependent on federal support,” Bernier said in a speech published in 2017.
Harding said it’s time for equalization payments to end, as this policy has produced negative results for the nation’s economy. “The recipient provinces leave their resources in the ground and keep their taxes high.” Harding also discussed the ongoing issue of corporate welfare, such as the federal disbursement of federal money to Bombardier and other Canadian corporations.
In his introductory speech on Monday, Harding also communicated his feelings on immigration and multiculturalism. “We should rescind multiculturalism,” the candidate said, believing this was a policy wrongfully introduced by Pierre Elliot Trudeau in 1971. In parallel with Bernier and other PPC members, Harding thought immigration had gone out of control in this country. “The PPC is the only party talking about mass immigration.” Harding said. Instead, Harding wants Canada to adopt a balanced immigration system favouring skilled workers. He also wants to limit the flow of refugees into this country. “We should prioritize working age people to come to Canada,” the candidate determined.
