Poilievre disagrees with conservative dean Preston Manning that a Carney win will fuel Western secession

Catharine Tunney · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 03, 2025 1:20 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 minutes ago

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre promoted nationalist unity and downplayed erstwhile Reform person Preston Manning's statement that a ballot for Mark Carney's Liberals is simply a ballot for Western secession during a run halt Thursday.

"No," said Poilievre erstwhile asked if helium agrees with Manning's provocative op-ed successful the Globe and Mail this week.

"We request to unite the country. We request to bring each Canadians unneurotic successful a tone of communal ground."

Manning, an elder statesman to galore successful blimpish circles, argued that Carney is simply a menace to nationalist unity and said Western Canadians "simply volition not basal for different 4 years of Liberal government."

"Voters, peculiarly successful cardinal and Atlantic Canada, request to admit that a ballot for the Carney Liberals is simply a ballot for Western secession — a ballot for the breakup of Canada arsenic we cognize it," Manning wrote. 

Manning goes connected to constitute that Western governmental leaders request to "provide a mechanics for recognizing and addressing the increasing enactment for Western secession successful an orderly and antiauthoritarian manner."

He suggested a league oregon immoderate benignant of forum beryllium held aft the April 28 predetermination to illustration the adjacent people of action.

"The adjacent premier curate of Canada, if it remains Mark Carney, would past beryllium identified successful the past books, tragically and needlessly, arsenic the past premier curate of a agreed Canada," Manning, who led the Official Opposition successful the precocious 1990s, wrote. 

His Reform Party, a location to Western Canadian Conservatives who were disillusioned with Ottawa, aboriginal morphed into the Canadian Alliance and yet merged with the Progressive Conservative Party to signifier the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada.

Poilievre, who astatine a young property was progressive with Manning's much right-wing Reform Party, did not prosecute with Manning's arguments during his Thursday quality conference, but argued a Conservative authorities would beryllium champion to unite the country.

WATCH | Poilievre says 'we request to bring each Canadians together' successful effect to Preston Manning op-ed 

"We can't springiness the Liberals a 4th word successful power," helium said during a run halt successful Kingston, Ont., leaning connected his go-to arguments of this predetermination campaign. 

"What we request is simply a caller Conservative authorities that volition unite Canadians, unleash our assets production, chopped taxes connected our workers and entrepreneurs truthful that we tin bring location our jobs, and basal up to President [Donald] Trump from a presumption of spot for a change."

Earlier this week, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she's not funny successful a referendum connected Alberta independence, but said citizens bash person a mechanics if there's capable support.

"We person a citizen-initiated process where if you get capable petition signatures you tin unit a vote," she said. 

"I got a mandate to hole Canada."

In a  missive that was made nationalist this week, Smith did constitute to Quebec Premier François Legault about pushing for greater provincial autonomy.

"I spot an accidental earlier us, arsenic the democratically elected leaders of Alberta and Quebec, to illustration a way toward a caller epoch successful Canadian federalism," Smith said successful the March 21 missive penned to her Quebec counterpart.

Poilievre's comments travel amid a renewed consciousness of patriotism successful galore corners of Canada arsenic Trump wages a punishing, and oftentimes confusing, commercialized warfare against Canada, his country's erstwhile closest ally.