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Trudeau maintains unpopular position on niqabs and attacks Mulcair during debate

Giuseppe Valiante THE CANADIAN PRESS MONTREAL — The first French-language leaders’ debate gave a somewhat subdued Justin Trudeau a platform to sharply defend his stand on one of the most divisive and emotional issues of the federal election: the niqa
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Liberal leader Justin Trudeau speaks during the French-language debate in Montreal on Thursday September 24, 2015.
Giuseppe Valiante

THE CANADIAN PRESS

MONTREAL — The first French-language leaders’ debate gave a somewhat subdued Justin Trudeau a platform to sharply defend his stand on one of the most divisive and emotional issues of the federal election: the niqab.

But Trudeau also used that heated discussion — and almost every chance he got during the two-hour exchange — to redirect attention back to his key messages on the economy and growth.

“I think that if a man can’t impose his will on how a woman should dress, we shouldn’t let the state impose how a woman shouldn’t dress,” the Liberal leader told his four opponents.

Polls say an overwhelming majority of Quebecers — and many Canadians across the country — disagree a woman should be allowed to wear religious face coverings during citizenship ceremonies.

But when Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe portrayed Trudeau as out of touch with Quebecers on the issue, the Liberal leader stuck to his position.

“Mr. Duceppe,” Trudeau said, “the people at home know very well what you’re doing.

“It’s a challenge you want to push, to distract them from the fact you can’t make a difference in their lives. We have a plan to relaunch the economy, to invest in families, that’s what we want to talk about.”

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper and Duceppe oppose allowing veils during the ceremony, while Trudeau, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair and Green party Leader Elizabeth May do not.

The debate was a night where Trudeau often stayed on the sidelines, as the strongest exchanges involved Mulcair, who was the main target due to his party’s dominating lead in the polls in French Canada.

The Liberal leader also took a softer approach, acting calmer and interrupting his opponents much less than he did during the first two English-language debates of the election campaign.

Trudeau frequently stuck to talking points, hammering home his party’s platform of cutting taxes for the middle class, increasing child-benefit cheques and running deficits to pay for billions of dollars worth of infrastructure spending that he says will stimulate the economy and create jobs.

“We put together a plan that will help you directly,” he said staring directly into the television camera. “And we will be a better partner to the provinces than Harper has been.”

His attack strategy was clear: to paint his strongest opponent in Quebec — Mulcair — as a centralizing figure who would impose an Ottawa-centric vision on the provinces.

Trudeau said the New Democrat wanted to give transfers to the provinces but with strings attached — a line that works in Quebec, a province leery of a strong central government.

“It’s surprising that the NDP wants to act like a centralizing government,” Trudeau said.

Trudeau also brought up the “centralizing” theme again on the issue of controlling greenhouse gases, when he criticized Mulcair for wanting to impose a cap-and-trade system created by Ottawa on the provinces.

The Liberal leader said provinces such as Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia have their own systems in place and the federal government should act as a partner, not as a dominant figure.

Trudeau also talked about his plan to run three years of what he called “modest deficits” of $10 billion in order to invest in infrastructure.

Mulcair said Trudeau’s plan would put debt on the backs of future generations.

Trudeau shot back saying, “A new (subway)isn’t debt, Mr Mulcair.

“The manufacturing sector needs roads and bridges in good health so that we can send our products to market,” Trudeau said, defending his pledge to borrow billions to invest in projects across the country. “We need a partner that invests and that’s what we are proposing. The others say balanced budgets at any price — and the austerity that comes with it.”

The word austerity has a special ring in Quebec, a province that has seen thousands of people protest the provincial government’s plan to cut public spending in hopes of balancing the budget.

The debate also touched on the fight against terrorism, military spending and refugees, with Trudeau repeatedly accusing Harper of destroying Canada’s reputation on the world stage.

Trudeau said Harper has failed veterans and hasn’t provided enough money for front-line military resources, especially for the Royal Canadian Navy.

Twice the Liberal leader said he would cancel the program to purchase the F-35 fighter jet, buy a cheaper aircraft and put the savings into shipbuilding.

He also criticized Harper for missing what he said was the Conservative leader’s “modest” target for welcoming Syrian refugees and added that a Liberal government would bring in 25,000 Syrians by the end of the year.

“Canada is respected world around for its engagements and interventions and in the past 10 years with Mr. Harper, we’ve withdrawn, we’ve become more mean-minded, and less Canadian on the international scale,” Trudeau said. “This must change.”