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Last Sunday, the People’s Party of Canada held a rally in Uxbridge, Ont., attended by about 100 supporters. PPC Leader Maxime Bernier was there, as was the PPC candidate for the riding of York-Durham, Patricia Conlin, and a gaggle of other PPC candidates.

But a heavy hitter was also in attendance. Namely, the self-made multi-billionaire Frank Stronach, who founded Magna International. This auto parts leviathan has sales of $40 billion, employs 180,000 workers, and has plants in 34 countries.

Stronach gave a speech in which he touted the merits of his “Canadian Economic Charter of Rights & Responsibilities.”

The charter, which Stronach says he’d like to see incorporated into the Canadian constitution, is focused on revitalizing Canadian workers, small businesses, and family farmers.

As Stronach noted: “If the economy doesn’t work, nothing else will work. You cannot feed the hungry or look after the most fragile: the sick, the elderly and people with disabilities. The fact is, the economy is driven by three forces: smart managers, hard-working employees and investors, and all three have a right to share in profits.”

Indeed, Stronach says a big reason for his success is derived from what he calls “fair enterprise” — essentially, sharing the corporation’s profits with all workers regardless of their position.

Details regarding the “7 common sense principles to revitalize Canada’s economy” can be found at www.economiccharter.ca.

Notably, this isn’t the first time the Stronach family has entered the realm of federal politics. Stronach’s daughter, Belinda Stronach, was elected as a Conservative MP in 2004. The following year, she crossed the floor to sit as a Liberal.

As for Frank Stronach in 2025, he says the PPC’s platform most closely aligns with his values.

In his speech, PPC leader Maxine Bernier bemoaned that “Carney and Poilievre used [President Trump’s threat of making Canada] the 51st state to play with our emotions.”

Bernier also slammed the Liberal and Conservative leaders for promoting “false patriotism” regarding Trump’s 51st state rhetoric.

Bernier again noted that the PPC is the only party that will withdraw Canada from the Paris Accord if it forms the next government.

Clearly, there is still bad blood between Bernier and his former party, the Conservatives. He went on to slam Poilievre for not going on podcasts with large audiences “because he won’t have a discussion — it’s all about slogans.”

In an interview, Bernier remained miffed that just like in 2021, he will not be invited to the federal leaders' debates next week. As well, he bemoaned that the mainstream media refuse to cover the PPC.

As for the polls which a few months ago indicated a Conservative landslide but now indicate that the April 28 election is shaping up top be a photo-finish horse race, not one person interviewed believed these polls are accurate.

And when asked that given the importance of this election, is it perhaps time for the Conservatives and the PPC to bury the hatchet and unite, Bernier said, “yes and no.”

He explained such a reunification would be predicated on the Conservatives agreeing to adopt the entire PPC platform. This prerequisite, alas, might prove to be a non-starter both now and in the foreseeable future.