Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff began his day in flood-hit Winnipeg Tuesday where he announced the Liberals' $225-million Canadian Freshwater Strategy, which would include a focus on flood prevention.
The two-year plan would fund research into various water-related issues across the country, including the floods that hit the Prairies each spring.
"We really do want to send a message to Manitoba, to Saskatchewan, to all communities afflicted by flooding that there may be an election on, but there are some things that are much more important to Canadians than the election," Ignatieff said.
"What they want to hear from their politicians is a positive message of hope. How do we get together to get the prevention strategies that fix this problem long-term?"
Flooding has forced hundreds of people from their homes in Manitoba and Saskatchewan in recent weeks and provincial officials warn that rivers such as the Red and Assiniboine have yet to reach their peaks.
Flooding also regularly hits Quebec, British Columbia and parts of the East Coast, and also exacerbates problems with housing and clean water in First Nations communities.
"Communities, especially aboriginal communities, are under threat," Ignatieff said.
From Winnipeg, the Liberal leader was scheduled to head to Brampton, Ont., in the vital 905 region around Toronto.
Both Ignatieff and Prime Minister Stephen Harper have spent much of the campaign in the area, targeting ethnic and religious groups in the high-density area that could make or break their campaigns.
Ignatieff has also focused his message, zeroing in on Canada's cherished social programs and warning that they will be the first to go if the Conservatives win a majority.
"The future of health care is becoming one of the key issues in this election," Ignatieff said in Yellowknife, N.W.T. before leaving for Winnipeg.
"It's an issue of equality of citizenship, making sure that no part of this country is denied that basic basket of services that all Canadians should be able to count on."
Former prime minister Paul Martin, who has recently pitched in on the Ignatieff campaign, mostly to criticize Harper's record on the economy, also issued a letter warning that health care is in jeopardy.
"The future of health care hangs in the balance" the fundraising letter said. "As you read this, there are just 14 short days remaining to save our cherished universal health care system."
