Rising to applause, the Conservative party鈥檚 freshly-minted leader Andrew Scheer took to the floor of the House of Commons Monday to attack the Liberal government鈥檚 policies towards young Canadians, middle-class families and the global fight against terrorism. The 38-year-old also managed to take digs at the 45-year-old prime minister鈥檚 age as well as his father鈥檚 legacy.

鈥淲hen I was younger, I remember families like mine who had to deal with the disastrous policies of the 1970s,鈥� Scheer, Canada鈥檚 new Opposition leader, said during question period Monday afternoon. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau鈥檚 late father, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, governed Canada for much of that decade.

鈥淚n less than two years, this prime minister is clearly leading Canada in the same direction with irresponsible decisions, higher debt and higher taxes,鈥� Scheer added. 鈥淎s the prime minister is much older than me, he must remember this difficult time. Can the prime minister then please explain why his policies are hurting young people and all those that this government claims it鈥檚 helping?鈥�

With Trudeau on an official visit to the Vatican and Italy Monday, Finance Minister Bill Morneau came to his government鈥檚 defence.

鈥淥ur plan is a plan that will help Canadians with high levels of growth,鈥� Morneau said after wishing Scheer success in his new position. 鈥淭he last prime minister is the best prime minister in six years. Lower unemployment -- lower unemployment than ten years ago. It鈥檚 important to continue with our plan.鈥�

Scheer continued his offensive, criticizing the prime minister for hurting young Canadians and middle class families by raising taxes on everything from payrolls to bus passes.

鈥淚f the prime minister doesn鈥檛 think there鈥檚 something wrong, that shows just how out of touch he is,鈥� Scheer declared. 鈥淲hy can鈥檛 the prime minister understand that this high tax, high spending agenda hurts the very people that he claims to help?鈥�

Morneau was quick to refute Scheer鈥檚 claims, citing recent middle class tax cuts and the success of programs like the Canada Child Benefit.

鈥淲e鈥檝e seen 250,000 net new fulltime jobs in Canada,鈥� Morneau added. 鈥淲e know that our level of economic growth, in the last quarter, it鈥檚 been the best in six years. So, Mister Speaker, our program is working, it鈥檚 helping Canadians, and we look forward to continuing it.鈥�

After persisting in his attack on the Liberals鈥� tax policies, Scheer switched to chastising the government鈥檚 commitment to defence spending and fighting ISIS.

鈥淔or no apparent reason, Canada鈥檚 contribution of surveillance aircraft [in Iraq] was quietly cut in half,鈥� Scheer said. 鈥淎nd even though [the prime minister] was at NATO bragging about Canada鈥檚 commitments, the truth is that the Liberals are happy to let others do the heavy lifting when it comes to fighting radical terrorism.鈥�

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan came to his government鈥檚 defence, touting its increased commitment to supplying ground forces and intelligence capabilities in Iraq to combat ISIS.

鈥淭he Manchester attacks prove that radical terrorism is a very real threat for Canada and its allies,鈥� Scheer retorted. 鈥淐an [the prime minister] name鈥ust one of our allies who agrees with our decision to leave the fight against ISIS?鈥�

鈥淲e increased our contribution to the fight against ISIS,鈥� Sajjan responded to jeers from across the aisle. 鈥淲e鈥檙e making sure that we take the time to consult with our allies, to making sure that we have the right resources in place.鈥�

During Scheer鈥檚 first appearance on the floor of the House of Commons since becoming the Conservative party鈥檚 new leader, the longstanding Saskatchewan MP showed that despite his amiable reputation as House Speaker between 2011 and 2015, he鈥檒l have no reservations with taking the government to ask.

But despite the attacks, Scheer also seems poised to bring a little light into the Conservative Party after more than a decade of former prime minister Stephen Harper鈥檚 often stony-faced rule. At the start of Scheer鈥檚 first caucus meeting in Ottawa on Monday, he was even introduced to the room as Katrina & The Waves鈥� airy 1983 hit 鈥淲alking on Sunshine鈥� played in the background.

鈥淚鈥檝e always said throughout the entire campaign that Conservatives have such a positive message,鈥� Scheer said during an appearance on CTV Power Play following question period.

鈥淲e improve the lives of hardworking Canadians. We create the鈥� conditions for the private sector to create the prosperity. We should be upbeat and happy about what we鈥檙e offering Canadians.鈥�

Speaking on Power Play, Scheer also stressed the need for party unity after an often divisive leadership race. As one of his first political moves on Monday, the new Opposition Leader had his former leadership rivals posing questions to the Liberals alongside him from the front row of his party鈥檚 section in the House of Commons.

鈥淚 wanted to showcase鈥� the abilities that they had [and] show the people that joined the party because of their campaigns that they are going to play an important role in our caucus, and ultimately in government,鈥� Scheer said.

Scheer also criticized the Liberals鈥� 鈥渇ear-mongering鈥� and 鈥渕ean-spirited attacks鈥� for attempting to tar him as a far-right social conservative, even though Scheer himself has made public statements in the past that have shown him to be an opponent of those advocating for issues such as LGBT and abortion rights.

鈥淭he theme of my campaign was finding the common ground,鈥� Scheer said. 鈥淭here are some issues that if we bring up鈥� it鈥檚 going to cause division within our own party. So, let鈥檚 leave those aside. Let鈥檚 work on the things we can agree with. That鈥檚 how we鈥檙e going to win in 2019.鈥�

Making sure that polarizing social issues stay off the Conservative party鈥檚 agenda is just one way that Scheer hopes to woo younger voters, who overwhelmingly flocked to the Trudeau Liberals in the 2015 election.

鈥淲hat I am going to spend the next 30 months doing is exposing what I call 鈥榯he lie of the left,鈥欌�� Scheer said. 鈥淟ook -- 鈥榮unny ways鈥� don鈥檛 pay the bills. You have to have opportunities. It鈥檚 conservative policies that create the conditions for prosperity, and we鈥檒l all benefit thanks to that.鈥�