The group ‘Centre Ice’ replaces ‘Conservatives’ with ‘Canadians’ in its name


OTTAWA-

An advocacy group created by centrist conservatives to give more voice to politics has dropped the party name to broaden its base.

The “Ice Center Conservatives” became the “Ice Center Canadians”. What does this say about the state of the federal party and the role of moderate conservatives within it?

According to Rick Peterson, one of the group’s co-founders, this decision should not be taken as a sign of a major change.

He says the decision simply reflects how the group heard from supporters who wanted to get involved without coming across as members of the federal Conservative Party.

Peterson, an Edmonton-based businessman who ran for the party’s leadership race in 2017, said the current race – in which many expect longtime Conservative Pierre Poilievre wins – had ‘minimal’ effect on his decision.

“I don’t think it really reflects an official party. It’s just that the reason we started the Ice Center Conservatives is that we didn’t think any of the parties were adequately addressing the issues of the center “, he says. “And we were right.”

He added: “This is not an anti-Pierre Poilievre movement.”

Yet with less than two weeks left in the race before the next leader is chosen, questions remain about what unity looks like and how different parts of the Tory coalition, including the party’s moderates, will react to a victory. by Poilievre.

While Poilievre campaigned on economic messages of fighting inflation and high house prices, he also defended participants in last winter’s “Freedom Convoy” in Ottawa and promised to bar future ministers to attend the World Economic Forum — a global organization that has been the subject of rampant conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Such moves have caused some to worry about the party leadership.

Longtime conservative strategist Melanie Paradis says Poilievre’s political record is that of a centrist or center-right conservative. This is reflected in campaign promises such as the promise to expand the runway at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to accommodate larger jets, she said.

What’s happening, Paradis suggests, is that Poilievre is mirroring the country’s anger.

“The tone in the country has changed,” she says. “And he talks about it, which is not the same as being far right.”


This report from The Canadian Press was first published on August 31, 2022.