GATINEAU, Que. — Federal leaders promised to spend in pursuit of a green recovery, give consumers more control over their data and address cellphone costs on Thursday night as they met for a contentious debate that barely touched on the economy.

With 11 days to go until election day, the other four major party leaders used the campaign’s only English-language debate to take aim at incumbent Justin Trudeau, criticizing the Liberal government’s track record on subjects like pandemic management, climate change and reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples.

But while executives and corporate groups have called for the parties to present long-term plans to grow the economy, citing flat or declining performance in business R&D and tech investment as well as productivity, Thursday’s debate included no discussion of such strategies.

A Conservative government would give consumers ownership over their data, leader Erin O’Toole said in response to a question from The Logic in the post-debate leaders’ press conference. The party’s platform pledges to “pass strong legislation to protect privacy more effectively” than the Liberal government’s Bill C-11, which died in Parliament when the election was called. There’s a “need to allow people to have ownership and control over their footprint [and] privacy, particularly in the digital age,” O’Toole said Thursday, citing the party’s support for open banking. 

The Liberals have promised to re-introduce the legislation, which would give consumers the right to transfer their information between firms. The party has also committed to implementing open banking. 

During the debate itself, meanwhile, Trudeau defended the Liberals’ spending during the pandemic, and its plans for more, which include $101 billion committed in the March budget and another $78 billion promised in the party’s platform. “It was being there [for people] because that is the best way to ensure a strong recovery,” he said.  

For the second night in a row, Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-François Blanchet raised concerns over labour shortages. He called productivity “the most important issue” and said some COVID-19 relief programs should be refocused on it.

In a contentious segment on climate-change policy, some of the leaders cited the economic potential of cleantech. O’Toole touted Conservative promises to fund the development of electric vehicles, hydrogen, and small modular reactors. The party’s platform proposes a Calgary-based research agency to direct $5 billion to those and other sectors.

“What we need to do is invest in a diversified economy,” said NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, in response to an earlier question on the future of the oil and gas sector, citing the potential for jobs in clean energy, electrifying transportation and building retrofits. In December 2020, the Liberal government pledged funding for each as part of a plan to reach a net-zero emissions level by 2050. Green Party Leader Annamie Paul called for incentives to encourage consumers and businesses to “adopt green technologies,” and for Canada to become “a global leader” in the field.

In a debate almost solely on domestic issues, a rare foreign-policy question addressed Canada’s relationship with China. Ottawa was drawn into escalating technology-focused tensions between Beijing and Washington under the Trump administration, particularly after the RCMP arrested Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver in December 2018 on behalf of the U.S.

“We have not worked with our allies on Huawei,” O’Toole said, claiming the Liberal government has also diverged from its international partners on cybersecurity. Canada has yet to announce the results of its security review of 5G networks, which will determine whether Huawei equipment can be used to build them. The country’s Five Eyes allies—Australia, New Zealand, the U.K. and U.S.—have all blocked domestic carriers from buying from the Chinese firm. 

The Conservatives have pledged to ban Huawei from the country’s 5G networks, and also to allow foreign wireless providers to enter the Canadian market. “We’re going to get bills down for Internet [and] cellular phones,” O’Toole said in the affordability part of the debate.

Foreign firms are already permitted to own telecom firms with a less than 10 per cent share of the Canadian market; U.S. giant Verizon was reportedly interested in acquiring Canadian carriers following rule changes by the previous Conservative government, but ultimately did not expand to the country. 

Advance voting begins Friday, with election day on Sept. 20.