Ontario Liberal Party leader Stephen Del Duca talks to CBC provincial reporter Mike Crowley. CBC News has asked for interviews with the leaders of the four main parties, which present a complete list of candidates in the Ontario election.
Crowley: What would make you a good prime minister?
Del Duca: I think it’s a combination of the experience and energy I have with a new Ontario Liberal team to make sure my daughters grow up in a province that gives them as many, if not more, opportunities than I do. I had while growing up here. And that motivates me every day of the week. And that’s why I believe that keeping them and the children in this province like them in my focus will help me be a great prime minister for this province from day one.
Crowley: What exactly are you wearing that would make you a better prime minister than, say, [PC Leader] Doug Ford?
Del Duca: Well, I think it’s a combination of several things again. One is trying to know how to actually make the job happen, not just through words, but actually keep my sleeves rolled up and work really hard, starting from day one, based on the experience I’ve had in the past.
But I also think that today I am a more self-conscious politician, so to speak, and a modest politician, because of the challenge of 2018. The people of Ontario know what 2018 was. That’s why we built a new team of Ontario liberals. We are putting together a compelling, forward-looking, forward-looking platform of ideas, and I am so excited about this conversation with the people of Ontario over the next few weeks. And I am even more excited about the work that lies ahead to rebuild this province in this progress-oriented way.
Why Liberal leader Stephen Del Duca says he would be a good prime minister
Del Duca told CBC provincial reporter Mike Crowley what he would bring to the position and how it differed from Prime Minister Doug Ford. 1:23
Crowley: You didn’t specifically mention what you’re wearing, which is different from Doug Ford, because apparently he was humbled in some way by the pandemic.
Del Duca: Well, I don’t know about that. I think a person who has been really humble would have approached the last few months differently, focused on managing and providing real leadership in a responsible and thoughtful way. I tell people everywhere I go: what I think people in this province want to see is a responsible and competent leader. I think these are other characteristics that I bring to this mission to move the countryside forward in this progress-oriented way.
Crowley: When people decide which party they want to vote for, they also go through this process of deciding which prime minister they want, who they think would be the best prime minister. Your other real competition for this job is [NDP Leader] Andrea Horvat. How would you contrast with it?
Del Duca: Well, I want to emphasize again, I really believe that the people of Ontario have a clear choice between Ford’s Conservative obsession with dragging us back and this forward-looking, progress-focused plan and team that the new Ontario Liberal Party offers.
Throughout this campaign, I will focus on making people understand how clear the choice is between the Ontario Liberals and the Ford Conservatives. And I know that the other opposition leaders, Mr Schreiner and Mrs Horvat, will put forward their ideas. This is good. This is the way it should be. But given what we have been through in this province, we cannot afford to take a risk for another prime minister and another government that does not have the necessary experience to start the important work that this province has to do on the first day.
I believe that, given my experience and the dynamic energy of our new Ontario Liberal team, this is a really great combination to put the people of Ontario first, and that is what we will do.
Del Duca became leader of the Liberal Party of Ontario in March 2020 (Alex Lupul / CBC)
Crowley: So, now we’ve seen the NDP platform. What is different about your platform?
Del Duca: I will confirm that I have not had the opportunity to go into detail about the NDP platform. I had the opportunity to hear only a little about it and see some of the media. There are some things in this platform that we have already committed to, and there are other ideas that we will talk about where there are many similarities. It was a bit of a challenge to see a full platform launch without spending details there. Again, I don’t think this is the way to instill the greatest confidence in the people of Ontario about how responsible and competent their plan would be if they won that honor.
But again, I want to highlight the combination of my experience with this new and dynamic team of Ontario Liberal candidates, women and men with experience in every area of life, first-line education, healthcare, and more. We will be ready to provide in a good and positive way for the people of Ontario.
Del Duca announces long-term care in Toronto on April 26. (Christopher Katsarov / The Canadian Press)
Crowley: What do you think will be the main issue for voting in this election? Obviously, there are many factors that influence how people decide to vote, but if there is one key main topic, what will it be?
Del Duca: Well, I think people want competence in the circus that they’ve had for the last four years with Ford Conservatives. They do not expect perfection from their leaders, but they want to know that the woman or man running this province and the team working with that woman or man actually have a responsible and thoughtful plan, are caring and competent enough to carry out that plan. and keep the people of Ontario at the center of their focus. And that’s what we’re committed to doing. This is what we are committed to doing.
This idea of back and forth, the percussion saw, the whiplash effect of what we have seen in the last four years, not only during COVID, but also in the last four years. People don’t want the circus to continue. They want competence. They want a responsible leader and they want a team that knows how to get the job done right.
Crowley: Are you saying that what Prime Minister Ford and his team showed during the pandemic is not a competence?
Del Duca: So I think if you look at the sum of four years, from reckless decisions to reduce public health, to make life difficult for municipal authorities, to meddling in municipal elections, the license plate fiasco that drags us back so brutally in the fight against the climate crisis. I mean, there are a number of very reckless and irresponsible decisions that precede COVID.
And then during COVID to see repeatedly not to listen to the evidence, not to listen to science. Reopen too early. Introducing Doug Ford’s own version of COVID’s conservative mapping in April 2021, closing playgrounds instead of listening to the scientific community. I mean, the list goes on and on and on.
Again, I don’t think people want or expect perfection, but they require competence, care, and responsibility that is taken seriously by the leader, and Doug Ford doesn’t have the capacity to do that. Ontario liberals do. Between my experience and our new dynamic team, we will be able to catch the bull by the horns, as they say, and begin work on rebuilding this province on the first day.
Del Duca nominated five candidates after speaking in Toronto in March as the party announced its first platform ahead of the province’s election. (Chris Young / Canadian Press)
Crowley: You talk a lot about competence and your experience. So obviously your experience as a minister in Win’s government is what you’re talking about. What is the proof of this level of competence in your time in government?
Del Duca: Well, I think the very nature of understanding that, as I say all the time, the words themselves, giving speeches, standing on a podium, reading a teleprompter, the way Doug Ford does, doesn’t work.
Crowley: That’s right, but I’m talking about your experience
Del Duca: I come to this. So that’s not the point. This is a really important distinction and no one should teach me this, because I learned that working in two senior positions in the cabinet, economic development and growth and transport, to be there to understand how you manage government resources to achieve really positive results. That you don’t just give a speech, but then you somehow disappear when weightlifting is required. That you have to be in it to the end, that you actually have to make sure that the public service that does the phenomenal work they do understands what needs to be done, and then hold yourself and hold the whole team accountable for achieving these results.
It’s not easy. To rule in good times is not easy, to rule in difficult times is not easy. I understand that. There is no need to study at work. I don’t have to wait six months to figure out what I want to do. I know how to convey this with the team, the new team we have, starting from day one.
Stephen Del Duca reflects the defeat of the Liberals in 2018 and when voters can expect a platform
The Ontario Liberal leader said people believe the party did not listen to them at the end of the Liberal term four years ago. As for when the party will launch a platform? “Soon,” he said. 1:21
Crowley: What do you regret about your time in Win’s government?
Del Duca: Well, look, I said that in 2018, the people had the chance to pronounce their verdict on the presentation of the last liberal government. I think what I experienced in my own community in Vaughan was that people felt that to the end that …
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