Heated exchanges fuel federal leaders’ final debate
Posted Oct 3, 2015 06:59:02 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
MONTREAL – Friday’s French language leaders debate in Montreal may have been quieter than the first French-language debate a week ago but it still featured some heated exchanges.
It started with the issue of women wearing niqabs at citizenship ceremonies but Liberal leader Justin Trudeau and NDP leader Tom Mulcair also ganged up on Prime Minister Harper over the whole issue of women’s rights.
Trudeau said Harper had some nerve defending women, when he has more men in his caucus who are anti-abortion than there are women wearing the niqab in Quebec.
Mulcair accused Harper of using the niqab issue to play politics and to divide Canadians.
He said he supports the existing rule that states anyone seeking citizenship must uncover their face to identify themselves before swearing the oath.
Mulcair was under pressure to shield the NDP, which won 59 of Quebec’s 75 seats four years ago, from the Tories in the Quebec City area, the Liberals in Montreal and the Bloc Quebecois in some of Quebec’s rural regions
The debate also touched on a wide range of other subjects — from the environment and foreign policy to the economy and firearms.
Green Leader Elizabeth May, who was excluded from the proceedings, accused Quebec’s TVA network of running an illegitimate event.
