Full Comment - Erin O’Toole on Afghanistan, COVID and the case for electing Conservatives

00:00:00.000 Hi, I'm Anthony Fury. Thanks for joining us on Full Comment. Our guest today is Aaron O'Toole,

00:00:09.980 leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. What are his policies? What is his vision for Canada?

00:00:15.180 We unpack it all with the man who could become Canada's next Prime Minister. Aaron O'Toole has

00:00:19.740 served in the Canadian Armed Forces, worked as a lawyer and became an MP in 2012, serving as a

00:00:24.740 cabinet minister in the previous Conservative government. He joins us now. Aaron O'Toole,

00:00:28.940 welcome to the program. Thanks very much for joining us. Great to be with you, Anthony.

00:00:33.360 Right off the bat, you're going around the country, you're saying hi to Canadians,

00:00:37.020 you're introducing your platform and why Canadians should vote for you. Why should Canadians consider

00:00:42.060 Aaron O'Toole as their next Prime Minister and their Conservative candidate as their local selection?

00:00:47.320 Well, because after the last 15 difficult months for our country, the health crisis of COVID-19,

00:00:53.200 the economic crisis of COVID-19, the country deserves a plan to get the country back on its feet. We have

00:01:00.660 Canada's recovery plan, a five-point plan to do that. And they deserve an ethical team that are going to

00:01:06.960 put the needs of the country and its people first, not the special interests, not the constant cycle of

00:01:13.220 scandal and cover-up that we've seen from Mr. Trudeau. And the country is quite divided after six years of

00:01:19.420 Justin Trudeau. So I'm also offering a vision to bring Canada together and make sure we're tackling

00:01:25.340 the issues and having an economic recovery in all sectors of our economy and in all regions of the

00:01:31.520 country. That's really what Canada's recovery plan is all about. And that's what I'm talking about

00:01:35.900 from coast to coast to coast. What do you mean by Canada being divided under Trudeau? I know

00:01:39.880 originally Justin Trudeau liked to sell himself as the great unifier. The name of his autobiography

00:01:44.780 was common ground that he released when he was first running for office. He said he wanted to

00:01:48.200 bring people together. I have a sense of what you mean though. I do feel like people are divided on

00:01:52.800 a number of these issues. I don't know what to call them, culture war issues or what have you.

00:01:56.360 What do you mean by Canada being divided under Trudeau? And how will you provide the solution to that?

00:02:02.680 I mean literally that, Anthony. Our confederation is at risk under Justin Trudeau. And I'll use an

00:02:09.020 example. When I was in cabinet in the last year of the Conservative government, the Bloc Québécois,

00:02:15.880 the separation party from Quebec, was not an official party in Ottawa. Now it's the third party.

00:02:22.440 It has more seats than the NDP. There were no separation movements in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

00:02:28.840 There are now. There are literally people giving up on the country because of Mr. Trudeau's kind of

00:02:35.300 Ottawa knows best, ideological approach. I often talk about my first public event when I was running

00:02:41.540 for leader. My first question in Nisku, Alberta came from a Canadian Armed Forces veteran who thanked

00:02:48.460 me for my service. And then he said, Mr. O'Toole, I've served 29 years for Canada and I'm giving up on

00:02:54.360 the country because of what Mr. Trudeau's done to my province. Wow, that punched me right in the face,

00:02:59.420 Anthony. A veteran who had Canada on his sleeve for his entire career was losing faith in our

00:03:05.140 great country because of a politician in Ottawa. So we have to tackle this. I'm a patriot. I think

00:03:12.020 Canada is a great country. We have our challenges. We have our inequities. But you have to love your

00:03:18.500 country to dig deep to build it and to address those challenges. And I want to bring the country

00:03:24.660 together. Canada's recovery plan will do that. And I'll tell you, national unity is a real risk

00:03:31.840 if Mr. Trudeau wins again. So last time around, we did not have this new political party called the

00:03:37.620 Maverick Party, where there are some people mostly in Central Canada, Western Canada, who are saying

00:03:42.260 we're really upset because of Western alienation. What is your message to people who are very upset with

00:03:47.300 Western issues? And you're saying, well, no, please, you know, we are the solution, the Conservative

00:03:51.120 Party. Well, I'm upset and have been talking about this for years. In fact, my speech to that

00:03:58.980 veteran in NISCU, Alberta, Anthony, was because I launched my campaign to lead the Conservative Party,

00:04:04.460 not in Bowmanville, Ontario, where I'm very proud to have grown up, but in Calgary. I went to address

00:04:10.060 those issues right away. My first phone call with Justin Trudeau, hours after I won the leadership,

00:04:15.660 he tried to make it sort of congrats, hope the families well. I said, Prime Minister, there's something

00:04:19.660 I want to talk about is Western alienation. And what anyone that is so frustrated like that veteran

00:04:26.500 and NISCU, don't let your frustration lead you to make a dumb decision. And I said that dumb, because you'll 0.98

00:04:34.580 help Mr. Trudeau. So the frustration comes from from Justin Trudeau's attacks on the energy sector, his kind 0.98

00:04:42.120 of, you know, arrogance in terms of forgetting about Western Canada, even missing Alberta when he was celebrating

00:04:48.700 Canada's 150th anniversary as a country. There's a sense that Mr. Trudeau doesn't care about large parts

00:04:56.840 of the country. I do. I've lived and served in all parts of it. And so the way to tackle that is not to

00:05:04.440 let your frustrations bubble over and incidentally help Justin Trudeau. It's getting behind our Conservative

00:05:11.720 Party, Canada's recovery plan, and using our incredible democracy to get rid of a Prime

00:05:18.400 Minister who is divisive, who is unethical, who has no plan for the future. And that's what I'm

00:05:23.720 offering. What are some of the things in the platform in your recovery plan that will deal with

00:05:28.840 a lot of those Western challenges, particularly, of course, the oil and gas sector, a lot of people

00:05:32.860 very frustrated at the Liberal government's position towards that Justin Trudeau's gaffe, or maybe it

00:05:37.740 wasn't a gaffe, maybe it was what he really feels about how you need to phase out that industry.

00:05:42.720 Well, he's had several Cabinet members, either just before they were elected or since, talk about

00:05:48.520 transitioning that entire industry, transitioning hundreds of thousands of people, taking away one

00:05:54.240 of the biggest drivers of our economic success in the last few generations, Anthony. So my first trip,

00:06:00.740 once COVID allowed me to travel again, I went out to Calgary and announced an equalization rebate

00:06:07.640 type program by fixing fiscal stabilization. We need to make sure that the equalization process

00:06:16.440 is fair by addressing the fact that when resource revenues drop off dramatically, you shouldn't have

00:06:23.000 provinces like Alberta, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland, and Labrador continuing to overpay into that system.

00:06:29.560 So I announced an equalization rebate. I've also said in our first 100 days, we will eliminate

00:06:36.360 the ideological attacks Mr. Trudeau leveled on Western Canada, Bill C-69, making it impossible,

00:06:43.820 not just to get a pipeline approved, to get any large project approved in any sector under this

00:06:49.860 program. It's led to literally $160 billion in jobs and investment leaving Canada before COVID.

00:06:58.420 We would reverse his point on the tanker van. We would stand up against illegal rail blockades that

00:07:04.420 were targeting critical pieces of infrastructure, hurting working Canadians. So we have a very ambitious

00:07:12.980 agenda to address some of the destructive elements of the economic policy of Mr. Trudeau that has led

00:07:19.140 to division. I'm also very proud of our energy sector and its leadership on environmental social

00:07:25.620 governance, ESG, and Indigenous partnership leadership. You know, Suncor, for example, spends about $900

00:07:33.620 million a year through Indigenous-led supply chain companies. When Mr. Trudeau cancels willy-nilly projects,

00:07:42.500 he's actually hurting Indigenous economic reconciliation. So I'm going to really try and

00:07:48.580 talk about the positives of our national resource sector. And I think the world, if they want to

00:07:54.220 consume any type of resource, energy, rare earth minerals for a Tesla, softwood lumber, Canada should

00:08:01.560 be the ESG leader in the world. And I will stand up for that on global trade discussions.

00:08:09.020 Aaron, let me also ask you, though, two issues here when it comes to division. We've got

00:08:11.920 Canada's first peoples and prosperity, of course, you're referencing that. And then

00:08:15.600 we have recently this Don't Celebrate Canada Day. We got a teardown statues of Sir John A. Macdonald,

00:08:20.980 even one of the famous five, one of the ladies in the person's case. What is your message about that?

00:08:27.200 Well, my message has been clear. I think you have to love the country if you're going to dig down and

00:08:32.400 commit to making it even better to tackle these issues. I said this in a public speech. I invited the

00:08:38.200 media into our last caucus meeting before the summer, where I said we should celebrate Canada

00:08:43.080 Day. Canada, in my view, is the greatest country in the world. Are we perfect? No. But millions of

00:08:50.180 people have come to build Canada based on the liberties we've provided, the opportunity we

00:08:55.420 provide. And if you measure us up alongside any other country, I think we fare well. And we care

00:09:02.180 to make ourselves better. So if we're really going to tackle the frustration and pain that the graves at

00:09:10.140 former residential school sites evoke in us, in Kamloops and Cowessess, I visited Cowessess,

00:09:16.460 I've spoken to the chiefs, we have to recommit to what our country truly is, which is a land of

00:09:22.680 opportunity for everyone and make sure we're ensuring that it lives up to that. And I'll tell you,

00:09:29.080 you know, Anthony, I've been talking about this, this idea of presentism, judging the past by the

00:09:36.300 moral standards of today. That is a slippery slope. I said that years ago, when Mr. Trudeau took the

00:09:42.140 name off of the Langevin building, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission itself said, you have to

00:09:48.500 learn from your history in order to go forward and address wrongs and injustices of the past. In fact,

00:09:55.760 at the core of reconciliation, Anthony, is reconcile past with present and future. So I love Canada, I

00:10:05.180 want it to commit completely to Indigenous reconciliation. That's why my first question in

00:10:11.600 the House of Commons was on one of the calls to action in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission,

00:10:17.640 which is why after the horrific Kamloops grave discovery, I said, let's move immediately on

00:10:25.740 calls to action 71 to 76 before Canada Day. Instead, Mr. Trudeau just wants to cancel Canada Day.

00:10:33.780 It appears leave the flags at half-mast forever. That's not how you build up a country. We've got to be

00:10:41.900 proud of who we are and recommit to address wrongs of the past and address the inequalities today. And

00:10:49.260 that's why I'm in politics, not to tear down, but to build up. Speaking about evocative images,

00:10:54.220 horrific images, we are seeing those images out of Afghanistan right now. People clinging to planes

00:10:59.600 as they take off on the tarmac. Just a lot of human tragedy happening stories we're hearing.

00:11:05.220 A lot of people afraid, particularly women in Afghanistan. How should this situation have been

00:11:12.060 handled by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau? How should Canada be handling it right now?

00:11:17.260 You know, Anthony, this has been heartbreaking to watch. Seeing people literally falling off of or

00:11:22.960 out of aircraft that they're scrambling to get on to escape the coming horrors, the fear of the Taliban.

00:11:29.740 Women and girls will likely be subjugated back to what we were there to fight. And it's heartbreaking

00:11:37.460 for military families. And I've spoken to many veterans I know that served in Afghanistan that

00:11:42.920 feel they left a part of themselves there. And sadly, this is another example of just Justin Trudeau,

00:11:48.760 the hollow Prime Minister. He never shows leadership, never follows up, just reads things that are given

00:11:55.640 to him. There's no sincerity in Justin Trudeau. This has been an issue that I've tried to advocate on for five

00:12:02.780 years. You may know this, Anthony, your colleague, Joe Warmington, myself, several veterans of the military

00:12:09.120 have been advocating for left behind interpreters that didn't know about the ability to find security in

00:12:15.760 Canada. We got one gentleman, James Ackham, home, and that was due to the really the promotion of Joe Warmington.

00:12:22.760 And the fact that I was able to deal with John McCallum, the first liberal immigration minister,

00:12:27.320 I said, let's do this because it's right. Forget the politics. These people are at risk because they

00:12:32.780 served us. Trudeau squandered five years, Anthony. And in the last six months, we knew the Biden pullout

00:12:40.120 was going to lead to more uncertainty, put people at risk. We should have the back of anyone who helped

00:12:46.840 our aid workers, our Canadian Armed Forces, our diplomats. If they're at risk because they had

00:12:52.040 Canada's back, my goodness, we should have theirs. What should we be doing moving forward,

00:12:57.380 given the fact that there's now a vacuum in this region, a security vacuum, something of a power

00:13:02.580 vacuum? We already know that there's a lot of forces in the world paying attention, knowing,

00:13:06.320 you know, looking at what they can do to maybe have a say in what happens in that region next.

00:13:10.960 How should Canada be thinking about Afghanistan moving forward?

00:13:14.680 Well, I think into that vacuum could emerge Canada and its allies. We have to work very closely with

00:13:20.300 the United States, for example. But if we work closely with NATO, which had a presence in the

00:13:25.560 Afghanistan campaign to provide a bit of certainty with respect to security for persecuted people that

00:13:33.040 supported Canada and other NATO partners, making sure that assistance and aid is not diverted

00:13:39.560 by the Taliban and the new regime coming in place. And I do think the US is reassessing how they can help

00:13:47.640 because they realize this vacuum has led to some chaos.

00:13:51.940 How do you do that, make sure the assistance and aid is not diverted if Taliban totally rules the roost? 0.99

00:13:58.000 Well, you deliver it directly. And look, this vacuum is caused because of a withdrawal.

00:14:04.440 But from an aid and a civil assistance level, countries could exert that pressure, either supporting through border locations or directly.

00:14:19.600 The issue is Justin Trudeau's phone is not going to ring, Anthony, because none of our allies take him seriously.

00:14:25.580 He goes to other countries for photo ops and to dance around.

00:14:29.400 I will go to fight for our interests and our values. And I've served with other countries during my time in the military.

00:14:37.720 I did some training and work with the US, with other NATO partners.

00:14:41.440 I worked on international trade in the private sector.

00:14:44.020 Wouldn't it be refreshing to have a serious prime minister that has real world experience,

00:14:48.320 has a commitment and will actually get people calling us for our participation?

00:14:53.520 So this is, I think, the contrast. Mr. Trudeau, always about himself, never about Canadians.

00:15:00.880 I will be serving as a prime minister to bring people together and to make sure a serious Canada is once again there on the world stage.

00:15:09.200 While we're on the topic of foreign affairs and also Canada sort of stepping up to an issue that it needs to,

00:15:13.460 when it comes to China, I know a lot of our allies, a lot of people, experts in security, national security,

00:15:19.120 have been calling on Canada to do things a little differently when it comes to China.

00:15:22.800 At a recent G7 meeting in Cornwall, there was discussion over that.

00:15:25.840 It did result in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau making a statement at the United Nations on, I think, on the weaker genocide issue.

00:15:34.060 What do we need to do, though, with China moving forward? And what would you as prime minister do?

00:15:39.400 Well, Justin Trudeau has been completely out of step with our allies and really with common sense for his six years as prime minister.

00:15:47.460 He started off when he was running for prime minister saying China was the country he most admired when he was asked.

00:15:53.820 The country I most admire, Anthony, is the country I've been serving since I graduated high school in one way or another,

00:15:59.080 12 years in the military and then trying to work as a volunteer and later as a parliamentarian.

00:16:04.500 That will be the big difference between the two of us.

00:16:07.660 And on China, whether it's Huawei, I've been saying for five, six years now that Huawei should never be part of our 5G critical infrastructure.

00:16:15.460 It was the conservative opposition, Anthony, that brought a motion in the House to declare the genocide towards the Uyghur minority population in Xinjiang.

00:16:26.440 Justin Trudeau didn't even show up for the vote.

00:16:29.320 So Canada has a proud record in defending human rights.

00:16:33.400 It was the Mulroney government that led the Commonwealth on apartheid.

00:16:37.680 And now we have Justin Trudeau not even showing up for votes on the dignity of people.

00:16:44.160 So I'm going to make international human rights a major point of our foreign policy.

00:16:49.900 I think Canada expects us to show respect for people at home and abroad.

00:16:56.520 And we're deeply rooted in our values in terms of respecting democracy, the rule of law, human rights, equality.

00:17:05.720 I think that needs to be a centerpiece.

00:17:10.000 And the almighty buck that Mr. Trudeau seems obsessed with with China is not worth it at the sacrifice of our values.

00:17:18.660 And Canadian workers have also been hurt by China in terms of steel, aluminum.

00:17:22.840 So I created the Canada-China Parliamentary Committee before I became leader.

00:17:27.580 It's been an area that I think Trudeau has been offside on for some time.

00:17:32.080 So we need to get get on the side with our allies, stand up to communist China in a serious way. 0.68

00:17:38.580 What sort of specifics in terms of China being involved in the Canadian economy would you do as prime minister?

00:17:44.280 There's talk during the previous election about withdrawing from the Asian Investment Infrastructure Bank,

00:17:48.260 concerns about whether or not there should be restrictions or just flat out legislation and rules.

00:17:52.840 against Chinese state-owned enterprises making purchases in Canada?

00:17:57.280 Yes, we have in our Canada, Canada's recovery plan, Anthony, a direct position on that.

00:18:02.240 The default position will be no to any takeover by Chinese state-owned enterprise.

00:18:08.040 And you'll have to, it'll be a default presumption that you'll have to actually reverse in order to do a transaction like that.

00:18:16.840 We would, again, commit to withdrawing from the Asian Infrastructure Bank.

00:18:20.700 The Belt and Road Initiative, various things that the communist regime in China does, is really an extension of its foreign policy.

00:18:30.520 And we shouldn't be partnering on their infrastructure work as an extent to that.

00:18:35.060 When we've got a lot of infrastructure that needs support here at home, Anthony.

00:18:38.680 And Huawei, of course, the fact that Mr. Trudeau is the only leader within the Five Eyes group of countries,

00:18:47.580 our closest allies, that hasn't said that Huawei can't be a critical part of our 5G,

00:18:52.900 our Internet of Things economy of the future,

00:18:56.120 just shows how deeply out of step he is with our allies and our security posture.

00:19:01.660 Aaron, in your platform, in the recovery plan, there's also a lot of sections, of course, on the economy, on affordability issues.

00:19:08.660 Inflation recently reports out from Statistics Canada saying inflation at about 3.7%.

00:19:13.620 Lots of concerns about the price of groceries.

00:19:16.300 Now, Justin Trudeau, as he's going around campaigning, he's saying he's making life more affordable for Canadians.

00:19:21.780 But you beg to differ and you say you have a better option, a better plan.

00:19:25.200 Yes, Canada's recovery plan is about getting wages up, getting people back to work in all sectors,

00:19:32.360 and a downward pressure on prices and more really for Canadians.

00:19:36.740 Recently, Mr. Trudeau said he doesn't sweat monetary policy, doesn't concern himself about it because it doesn't impact families.

00:19:44.240 Wow, you know, totally disconnected by the fact that inflation is pricing families out of their home, out of their community.

00:19:51.920 The rising price of groceries, of gas, of we're in a housing crisis.

00:19:56.240 This is driven by inflation.

00:19:58.640 And inflation, in part, is being caused by the excessive spending of Justin Trudeau.

00:20:04.880 That because of the election, he keeps just extending that spending with no real plan to get people working,

00:20:11.280 no real long-term plan for prosperity.

00:20:13.600 So we have that in Canada's recovery plan.

00:20:16.220 We're going to get the spending under control as we get the economy back on its feet.

00:20:21.140 And for us, it's all sectors of the economy, Anthony.

00:20:25.140 The Liberals, the NDP, the Greens, and the Bloc, they're against certain jobs, you know, natural resources.

00:20:31.340 They don't really stand up for small businesses.

00:20:33.660 Justin Trudeau once described them as tax cheats.

00:20:36.760 I want every cylinder in our economic engine firing because we do have some challenges coming out of COVID,

00:20:43.840 about a half trillion dollars worth of debt Mr. Trudeau's accumulated over his time,

00:20:47.840 high unemployment in some areas, and then a shortage of the workforce and others.

00:20:53.000 So we have a five-point plan, a million jobs in a year, tough anti-corruption laws,

00:20:58.560 national leadership on mental health, self-sufficiency in vaccines and other critical items,

00:21:03.600 and balancing the budget over the course of the next decade.

00:21:05.840 That will put an upward pressure on paychecks and hopefully some downward pressure and some relief

00:21:13.540 on the spiraling cost of living.

00:21:16.240 Aaron, you just said the word COVID, and I think that's the first time either of us have actually said that word

00:21:20.060 during that conversation.

00:21:21.240 I go, well, maybe that's kind of refreshing.

00:21:22.780 Maybe that suggests this is in the rearview mirror now, and we've done a lot.

00:21:25.860 We brought in the precautions.

00:21:27.040 Vaccination rate is very high across the country.

00:21:29.320 So, okay, good.

00:21:30.420 It's in the rearview mirror, but we do hear talk about fourth wave,

00:21:33.960 a lot of concerns about what's happening just around the corner in September as the campaign continues,

00:21:39.680 or later on October, November.

00:21:41.880 Do you support more restrictions?

00:21:45.040 Should cases increase?

00:21:46.780 Should situation worsen?

00:21:48.100 Do you support a subsequent lockdown?

00:21:51.200 I support using the tool and all of the learnings we have from the various waves of COVID, Anthony.

00:21:58.700 And this is where I think the federal government has really fallen down.

00:22:02.840 Using daily rapid screening and testing, which we are on my campaign, for example,

00:22:08.900 can actually give you a lot of certainty to keep the economy open with, you know, testing,

00:22:15.560 with mask usage and certain rules.

00:22:18.680 Let's use all the tools.

00:22:20.380 I think this has been, as I said, the most frustrating part,

00:22:23.960 that Justin Trudeau was late on getting the rapid tests so integrated into our society.

00:22:29.760 I have a sister in England whose kids were sent weekly rapid tests to go to their schools and things like this

00:22:37.780 because they had a national supply.

00:22:40.020 The UK Tory government there showed leadership on vaccines, leadership on rapid testing,

00:22:45.980 getting it out, pushing it out.

00:22:47.240 We need to use all those measures because we need to try and minimize any further disruption.

00:22:53.540 I talk to small business owners all the time, Anthony.

00:22:56.400 So many in hospitality and services and travel tourism are hanging on by a thread.

00:23:01.860 So our recovery plan will give them some direct help.

00:23:05.460 But we also need to avoid as much as possible any other further disruption.

00:23:10.740 And I'm a firm believer I've been calling for a national rollout and ownership of the rapid test issue for over a year, Anthony.

00:23:20.360 We need leadership and Mr. Trudeau has been absent.

00:23:24.260 We've always been late throughout this crisis.

00:23:26.600 But I think a year ago, I would have been fully with you there.

00:23:29.480 Now we're talking about, okay, we're into 2021 and the fall of that.

00:23:33.640 How long does one do this rapid testing for when we're at the point where

00:23:36.420 we've got quite a few chief medical officers of health in provinces across the country saying we're in the learning to live with COVID phase?

00:23:43.500 Do we live with rapid testing for many months to come?

00:23:47.740 When there's outbreaks, right?

00:23:49.400 So right now we see little pockets of outbreaks.

00:23:52.040 We saw some in the interior of British Columbia, for example.

00:23:55.440 That's where you, boom, deploy the tools, get some masking back in, get some rapid testing,

00:24:01.660 and contact trace like an army, you know, in terms of tracking everything.

00:24:07.620 Then you can contain it because you're right.

00:24:10.560 We are in a much different situation.

00:24:12.720 We have vaccine rates up approaching herd immunity.

00:24:16.700 And that's awesome that a lot of Canadians went out and got the jab, did their part.

00:24:21.400 My wife and I publicized ours, publicized our experience.

00:24:24.740 We caught COVID in the second wave.

00:24:27.480 So let's use those tools.

00:24:29.760 But, of course, they're more isolated, Anthony, because at this point we have to really jump on little flare-ups

00:24:36.080 before they become a problem.

00:24:39.320 And that's where you, boom, implement.

00:24:41.900 But I'll tell you, I held up a rapid test on a video months ago because most Canadians have never even seen one.

00:24:47.540 Other countries have deployed millions of them.

00:24:50.340 But because Mr. Trudeau was about five months later than most European countries on even approving one

00:24:56.360 at the Health Canada stage, we're, once again, behind in their deployment.

00:25:02.040 What are the priorities?

00:25:03.000 You get into office, you're elected Prime Minister.

00:25:05.460 What's the day one task?

00:25:08.320 Anyone who wants to know that about me, Anthony, flip open Canada's recovery plan.

00:25:14.100 Jobs is number one.

00:25:15.880 A million in a year.

00:25:16.800 Highly impacted sectors help, an incentive to work, an employment boost.

00:25:22.060 In fact, a real boost for folks that are chronically unemployed.

00:25:26.120 The second pillar, accountability.

00:25:28.160 We've got to end the cycle of cover-up and corruption in Mr. Trudeau's Ottawa.

00:25:32.700 Third is a national leadership position on mental health, supports, tackling some of the shadow pandemics

00:25:39.200 like addiction and domestic violence increases.

00:25:42.420 This is, as you know, mental health has been very important to me in my work with veterans.

00:25:47.720 Fourth, building up domestic capacity.

00:25:50.260 And fifth, getting our budget back to balance.

00:25:52.000 So really, I want the country working.

00:25:54.180 So the first pillar is the first pillar for a reason, Anthony.

00:25:57.080 We have to get rid of the ideological barriers to work, like I said, Bill C-69 and some of the other

00:26:03.120 liberal policies of the last few years.

00:26:06.380 And I value all workers.

00:26:08.200 And that's why I'm reaching out to union leaders, indigenous entrepreneurs.

00:26:12.620 I want to return to valuing work.

00:26:16.860 Whether you're getting up early to drive your cab in Mississauga or open your small business

00:26:21.080 in Surrey, there's a nobility in that.

00:26:24.080 And we have to change the paradigm of reliance.

00:26:28.460 And just extending the CERB and programs, all the other parties would like the CERB to become

00:26:34.940 a universal basic income.

00:26:36.220 That would hollow out our future.

00:26:38.600 And it would change kind of the self-reliance that people know Canada for, the immigrant 0.83

00:26:44.800 business folks that within a decade come with very little and then are employing five other

00:26:50.480 people.

00:26:51.180 That's the story of Canada.

00:26:52.640 And I think we have to get back to that.

00:26:54.780 Aaron O'Toole, thanks very much for joining us on the podcast today.

00:26:57.480 Much appreciated.

00:26:58.160 All the best to you.

00:26:59.460 Great to be back with you, Anthony.

00:27:02.060 Full Common is a post-media podcast.

00:27:04.260 I'm Anthony Fury.

00:27:04.960 This episode was produced by Andre Proulx, with theme music by Bryce Hall.

00:27:09.140 Kevin Libin is the executive producer.

00:27:11.320 You can subscribe to Full Common on Apple Podcasts, Google, Spotify, or wherever you get

00:27:15.620 your podcasts.

00:27:16.620 You can help us by giving us a rating or a review and by telling your friends about us.

00:27:20.400 Thanks for listening.

Full Comment - August 23, 2021

Erin O’Toole on Afghanistan, COVID and the case for electing Conservatives

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