NDP leader Jagmeet Singh launched his election campaign at a press conference in downtown Ottawa, saying he is the right candidate to look after the interests of everyday Canadians.
Singh accused liberals and conservatives of looking for wealthy and large corporations of profits, and said it was the NDP who fought for universal healthcare and union negotiation power in Canada.
Singh also mentioned Donald Trump’s tariffs in Canada, saying his party is perfect for dealing with the US president.
Given the decline in NDP votes, Singh, who became leader in 2017, was asked at a press conference why he considers NDP a worthy person to lead him into his third campaign in a single-digit vote.
Singh pointed out that it was his party that urged the liberal government to introduce dental treatment and pharmacy programs based on the supply and trust agreement that the NDP had with Trudeau liberals, and that he was the one who would fight for Canadians.
“I want people to know at this time when there is a serious threat to our country.
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Below is the text of Shin’s March 23rd campaign speech.
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A statement released by Jagmeet Singh, NDP leader in downtown Ottawa, on March 23rd:
Before we begin, we would like to acknowledge that we are gathering in traditional and unknown territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people. This land has been home to the natives since ancient times and we are aware of their enduring existence, culture and the management of these lands. We commit to reconciliation and justice, not just in our words, but in our actions.
And I would like to take a little time to recognize the incredible people in this room, our dedicated volunteers, some of our team. Thank you to the candidates ready to fight for you.
And most importantly, you, the people who make this country wonderful. thank you. My parents chose Canada. Because they believed in the promise of the nation, if you worked hard, we could find each other and build a good life where no one would be left behind. That’s us. That’s what makes us Canadian.
As Canadians, what we are most proud of is not just what happened. They were not gifts from powerful people. The new Democrats fought for them because they believe they’ll bother you if you get sick. So we fought and won for Universal Healthcare.
Because no one should go bankrupt trying to pay the hospital bill. I believe that if you work hard for the rest of your life, you should be able to retire with dignity. So we fought for the pension and won.
We believe you have the right to join the union, so you can demand fairness and stand up to your boss. So we fought and won for those rights.
We believe that no matter who you are, you were born here, you came here, you are your skin color, the person you love, the pronouns you use, you worship, what you believe, you belong to, you are important, you have all the rights that this country has to offer to you.
These are NDP values. These are Canadian values. It’s Canada I love and it’s worth fighting Canada.
And when a new Democrat is elected, that’s exactly what we do. Even before Donald Trump launched his greedy trade war, times were tough and we fought to make things better for you and your family.
Illness Day and Law paid to protect you at work. That was us. Pharmacaire so you can afford the medication your doctor will prescribe. It was us because we believe that Canada’s promise belongs to us all.
Let’s talk about Brianna. Brianna is the mother I met in Edmonton. I met her in the park with her beautiful family. She has five children and a single mother, so she’s struggling. So, all she can do is keep the roof above her head, support her child and place food on the table. And as a mom, she had to sacrifice. She had to make some tough choices. And one of the things she had to do is, given how expensive it was, she couldn’t afford to take the child to the dentist, and she felt the guilt of many mothers.
What many parents understand is that they feel they are not doing everything they can to care for your child. And she felt the guilt until we fought and delivered to our children. That dental treatment meant differences in her family. It was the first time they saw the dentist because of the plan we fought, and she told me that her eldest son actually had a rare condition they had caught early and that he would now live a wonderful life.
Her other children are able to receive dental treatment for the first time in their life, and they are happy and healthy. And I can prove it. Because I saw them smiling and playing in the park. I remember the joyful expression on their faces and the feeling that Brianna knew she was able to take care of her child. Brianna is the one we fight and we will continue to fight for her and all Canadians
But today, the promises of that great future are becoming more and more distant. You can hear it wherever you go. Sitting at her kitchen table, her mother spread the bill out in front of her, wondering if she could pay the rent or still afford groceries. A young couple scrolls through the list and realizes that ownership of a house is sliding even further out of reach. Elderly people are waiting for their family doctor to find the health care they need.
And now, things are becoming even more expensive due to Donald Trump’s illegal trade war. Thousands of Canadians have lost their jobs. The people who built this country pay the biggest price, but that’s not fair. They deserve government that has their backs. You deserve a government that has your back and we fight like hell to make sure it happens.
You deserve a Prime Minister who can trust in making decisions for your greatest benefit, rather than moving forward with his personal wealth. And we know that it’s not Mark Kearney, who is going to fight for your greatest profit. He has spent his entire career serving the interests of billionaires, shareholders and CEOs. He makes decisions that benefit people like him. He’s not our man. Because no one who benefits from a crisis should be in charge of fixing it.
Nowadays, those who built the country, without a multi-million dollar portfolio, without blind trust or hedge funds, who show up to work to make a living, who owns a home, raises their families, and retire on modest pensions, are abandoned.
Mark Kearney spent his career making sure the system works for the wealthiest person, not for you. The family struggled to pay rent, but he was helping banks and investors benefit from the housing crisis. When people needed relief, he made sure that the price-driven companies would continue to make profits rough. He cashed while the Canadians were struggling. Now I want you to believe he will fix what has made him and his friends richer. He does not fight for everyday people. That’s not because he’s who he is, because he’s not the same now.
And his only solution is tax cuts for the wealthy, which will cost you. He pretends he’s by your side, but in the back room he’s dealing with a very billionaire jacking your rent and groceries.
He posed in front of a newly lost worker and said nothing about modifying the EI to help pay the bill. Pierre Poilievre talks about freedom, but he is simply offering the super rich, freedom for businesses to jack your rent, freedom to avoid paying billionaires’ taxes, freedom to big businesses to buy our healthcare.
He wants to disrupt environmental protection and gives more control to large profitable polluters, large profitable polluters than clean air and water. He removed the support that helped Canadians achieve their goals and pet their families for themselves while the billionaires became even more enriched. When times get tougher, he won’t intervene. He stands aside. It’s not a leadership, it’s not a plan to build a Canada that we’re proud of.
Let me be completely clear, we will never be the 51st state of Trump, not the name, not the value, not the previous. Everyone raises their elbows!
And I won’t tell anyone in this election that the only way to defeat Donald Trump is to become like the American version of billionaires rule and everyday people pay.
Now I got it now, it can feel like the storm is closing on us. People fear the government of Pierre Poillivres to help shelter, protect, to keep them and their families safe for the sake of shelter, to keep them and their families safe, fearing that they may make them think that they have no choice but to Carney. But this is something that is said to need to choose a leaky home, a house with a leaky roof, or between a cracked foundation. One was patched with conservative slogans in the sky, and the other corrupted from within after years of liberals protected the wealthiest. Now those houses aren’t the same, but neither could be built for you, so neither would hold up when the storm hits.
In this election, people will tell you who can negotiate with Donald Trump. I’m here to tell you the real question. When Donald Trump demands concessions, who makes sure there’s no one at the table that cares about? Who would say no to trade Canadian work and us growing, building and shipping? Who will stop negotiating with environmental protection just to protect the interests of businesses? Who will fight back when Mark Kearney says he has to cut his healthcare and pensions to keep investors happy? When Pierre Poilievre says you have to embrace an American-style healthcare system that pays more, you can also give tax deductions only to billionaires, new Democrats can trust you to be careful.
Donald Trump shows in real time what happens when billionaires and those who work for them are in charge. Everything becomes more expensive, disenfranchised, and ordinary people are left to clean up the confusion while the wealthy walk more. That’s not necessary here in Canada. It’s not necessary at all.
We all know that we are on the rough path ahead. Things are already tough, and at the end of the day only new Democrats will fight to ensure they don’t pay the price when things get harder.
I’m running in this election to fight for you, not for the billionaire. New Democrats have a strong and proud record of getting things done when prices skyrocket. When people were fired, we fought for relief. When corporate greed ran into the wild, we fought for work and better support. He chased billionaires like Gallen Weston, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.
Wealthy and powerful people never pass change on us. They are too much to lose. From Canadians, families, and pensions to public health, each wins for middle-class and middle-class people working.
Billionaires don’t keep the rich by playing fair. They wake up one morning and don’t decide to stop guing you at the grocery store. They didn’t decide to lower your rent or raise your wages. It only happens when we request it, when we fight for it, and when we win.
Don’t let the rich and powerful person tell you that you deserve less. In times of crisis, don’t convince them that you have to sacrifice while they are profiting. Because when a storm strikes, they don’t feel it. There is a Golden Parachute, a private clinic and a tax shelter.
But for working middle-class and middle-class families, the only way to improve life is to choose a leader who will stand together and fight for you rather than for the billionaire. That’s the purpose of this election. That’s what’s in danger. We see what’s going on in the US, greed tore it apart, those same forces are pounding our doors. We have to fight back.
We are not here to patch a broken system for the next storm. We are here to rebuild ourselves stronger, safer and fairer for everyone. I believe it is worth fighting for. You are worth the fight and I’m there for you.
Thank you very much.
