Celebrity investor Kevin O鈥橪eary is expected to announce his candidacy for the leadership of the Conservative Party on Wednesday, 麻豆影视 has confirmed.
The campaign launch will come one day after the French-language leadership debate that 13 other leadership candidates are expected to participate in Tuesday evening in Quebec City.
O鈥橪eary, known among Canadians for his television appearances, launched a software company that was eventually acquired for more than $4 billion. He also started O鈥橪eary Funds, O鈥橪eary Financial Group and O鈥橪eary Fine Wines.
He has often been critical Justin Trudeau鈥檚 economic policies, calling the Canadian economy 鈥渄eeply broken.鈥� He told 麻豆影视 Channel in December that he has an 鈥渁rmy鈥� of young supporters who are 鈥渟till living in the basement鈥� and that Trudeau鈥檚 鈥渟elfies鈥� and United Nations work are proof that the prime minister 鈥渄oesn鈥檛 care about those millennials anymore.鈥�
Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, whom some Conservatives have encouraged to run for the job, told CTV鈥檚 Power Play soon after the news broke Tuesday that he wants to hear more about O鈥橪eary鈥檚 policy proposals, including on climate change.
鈥淚 have heard notionally that, at least for a time, he was in favour of a carbon tax and we鈥檝e got some real concerns around that,鈥� said Wall, who was one of two premiers who refused to sign on to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau鈥檚 climate change strategy last month.
Wall added that it鈥檚 important for the party leader to be 鈥渧ery fluent in French鈥� and he鈥檚 not sure O鈥橪eary is up to the challenge.
O鈥橪eary CTV Question Period host Evan Solomon last week that he鈥檚 taking lessons and will be He also joked at the time that there are 鈥渢hree official languages鈥� in Canada: English, French and 鈥渢he language of jobs,鈥� which Trudeau will never speak.
Leadership candidate Andrew Saxton, who is bilingual, told Power Play that he thinks the next leader must speak French.
鈥淪ome people say that he鈥檚 trying to avoid the French language debate because he doesn鈥檛 speak French,鈥� Saxton said. 鈥淲ell 鈥� my Canada is made up of both English- and French-speaking Canadians and his Canada should be as well.鈥�
O鈥橪eary has said more than once that he was waiting to get into the race until some of the candidates dropped out, and that it was pointless to participate in debates with more than a dozen candidates on the stage.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not really a debate at all, it鈥檚 a series of 20-second soundbites,鈥� he told 麻豆影视 Channel in December.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 have the name recognition problem, I don鈥檛 have a money problem, I have a too-many-candidates-in-the-race problem,鈥� he said at the time.
In addition to targeting his lack of French, O鈥橪eary鈥檚 fellow candidates have criticized his statement last week to Question Period host Evan Solomon that he would consider reforming the Senate by to 鈥渁ccredited鈥� people willing to pay 鈥渁 hundred thousand or a couple hundred thousand each year.鈥�
The Conservative Party holds 12 of Quebec鈥檚 78 seats and many political pundits believe those seats would be at risk with a non-bilingual leader. Four of the MPs from Quebec Saskatchewan鈥檚 Andrew Scheer and two have endorsed fellow Quebec MP Maxime Bernier. Both men are bilingual.
