Making Canada Affordable

Posted on 20 May 2026 by Ryan Dahlman

Glen Motz

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre recently gave a speech outlining his plans to make Canada affordable here at home. He spoke with both realism about where we are today and optimism about what Canada can be. The following are some highlights from that speech.  

Canada should be the richest, most affordable and independent country on earth. We have more resources per person than any country in the world. It should be less expensive to buy a house, to heat that house and to drive a car. Grocery costs should be so affordable that price is an afterthought, given all the farmland we have. On electricity, Canada has the world’s third largest supply of uranium, the most rivers to power hydro, and the cheapest natural gas to generate power, yet for the first time ever, Canada is unable to produce enough electricity to supply itself.  We have the fourth-largest amount of oil in the world yet are the only G7 country without a strategic reserve and still rely on imported oil. 

Unfortunately, after one year of Mark Carney, Canada’s reality does not match this potential.  The economy is weaker, and life is more expensive than ever before. Canada has the highest household debt, the most unaffordable housing, the lowest investment per worker, the worst food price inflation, the second lowest productivity and the second highest unemployment in the G7. 

Even worse, under the Liberals, an outflow of half a trillion dollars of investment has left our country for the United States. Twice as much investment has left Canada in the last 10 years than has returned. Twice as many Canadians are opening businesses in the United States as in Canada. Yes, you read that correctly!

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business wrote that after a year of Mark Carney, “More businesses have been closing than opening in Canada. It’s time to admit it: We’re in an entrepreneurial drought. High costs, tax and payroll pressures, red tape, labour challenges and never-ending uncertainty are discouraging the next generation of entrepreneurs. More businesses in Canada have closed than opened for six consecutive quarters, and more than half (55%) of small business owners say they would not recommend starting a business right now.”  These are not just statistics, behind these numbers are the lives of real Canadians.  

Despite these realities, the government’s recent Spring Economic Update fails to address our economic pain. Government revenues increased because of inflation, yet the Liberals chose to spend it rather than reduce the debt or deficit, adding $54B in new spending this fiscal year. The projected $67B deficit will result in $59B in debt interest this year, and with annual deficits projected to be between $60-70B over the next few years, interest charges are expected to exceed $80B within 5 years.

Carney’s latest illusion, known as the ‘Sovereign Wealth Fund’, should be called the Sovereign Debt Fund, as our country has no surplus to invest. Former Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page said that Canada’s economy remains weak, and to deal with this deficit, the government is going to have to either increase revenue (by increasing taxes) or cut expenditures significantly.

What Canada needs to fix these problems is not more top-down government programs, but leadership with the humility to get out of the way of economic activity and prosperity.   Conservatives want Canada to be a free market economy, to unleash the genius and work ethic of the people to build affordable, hopeful lives. Our mission is to make Canada affordable and safe by reaching our full potential. 

Our Conservative approach is focused on delivering four pillars: affordable and abundant energy, low inflation and taxes, free market competition, and national self-reliance. 

Affordable energy is key to defeating poverty and powering our economy.  Energy is the flow-through price of everything we buy.  It heats our homes, runs our businesses, powers our farms, and delivers all the goods we consume.  When energy is abundant, it is cheaper to buy, and everything else becomes more abundant.  To have abundant energy, current laws that limit energy production need to change and taxes on energy must be reduced or eliminated.  

Low inflation and low taxes are signs of a strong dollar. Governments that control their money supply, rather than printing more, ensure it grows at the rate of output in the country, allowing it to retain value.  When inflation stays low, earnings and savings are rewarded, which protects and grows purchasing power. This is accomplished by balancing budgets, keeping spending low, and avoiding out-of-control deficits.

To get the deficit under control, Carney Liberals must axe the $90-billion Alto rail project, scrap the $742-million Liberal gun grab, cut back the $20 billion spent on external consultants in 2024–25, reduce the $65.8 billion spending on the federal bureaucracy, and lower foreign aid spending which totalled over $12 billion in 2024–25. They should also cut corporate welfare, stop taxpayer-funded handouts for false asylum claims, and close tax havens for insiders while reducing taxes for working Canadians.

Canada was built on free enterprise, and the economy grew because workers, business owners, farmers, entrepreneurs, and investors were free to make their own decisions – without bureaucratic interference.  Conservatives will cut corporate welfare, lower business taxes, remove capital gains taxes when gains are reinvested in Canada, and reduce taxes on work, investments, home building and energy.  

We will also make Canada self-reliant, because we cannot depend on the rest of the world in this increasingly difficult and unpredictable time. The Conservative ‘Canadian Sovereignty Act’ is designed to repatriate money-making production to our country and make Canada a magnet of economic activity so that we can provide for ourselves.  We will repeal anti-energy Bill C-69, remove the ban on shipping, and get rid of the industrial carbon tax to bring back our production of steel, aluminum, fertilizer, concrete, cement, gas and oil.  By liberating the energy and brilliance of our workers, entrepreneurs, inventors and creators to exchange, build, invest, and undertake, we will all be better off.  

There are no limits to our potential when Canadians are free to achieve their dreams. That Canada – affordable, independent, and bursting with opportunity – is the Canada that we must rebuild.  I would encourage you to listen to Pierre Poilievre’s full speech here: https://bit.ly/42n3d24