OTTAWA - Today, the Council of Canadians launched a national advertising campaign challenging voters to reject Stephen Harper and his party’s plans to privatize Canada’s essential services.

"Canadians have become so disillusioned that they are considering voting Conservative as a solution to this government’s accountability problems," says Maude Barlow, National Chairperson of the Council of Canadians. "But what Canadians should realize is that if they 'demand better' and vote Conservative, they will actually be getting a government that is much, much worse."

"The Conservatives are promising a more accountable government, but as we’ve seen time and time again in failed private and public-private ventures across Canada, privatization leads to less accountability, accessibility, and quality of service," adds Barlow.

Despite the advice of his handlers, who want this unpopular position to remain a secret, Harper has been candid in declaring that he will consider allowing the privatization of essential services and the private, for-profit delivery using public funds of services like health care.

The Council of Canadians’ advertisements contain a quote from the English federal leaders’ debate when, in reference to Canada's health care system, Harper stated that "sometimes provinces have allowed private services [to be] covered by public insurance... Why do I care and why do we care as a federal government how they're managed?"

Canadians are clear on this issue - a recent Ipsos-Reid poll revealed that 75% of Canadians believe that Canada should rebuild its public infrastructure such as hospitals, schools, highways, and water systems through direct public investment and not through public-private joint ventures with corporations. The Council of Canadians is highlighting this poll in its advertising campaign.

"A Conservative government would privatize essential services such as health care, water, and education," says Barlow. "Canadians are looking for an alternative, but they shouldn’t be foolhardy in transferring their vote to a party that so clearly does not represent their values."

The advertisements will run on June 24 in Victoria, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Toronto, Hamilton, and Halifax.

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Click here to download the newspaper ad challenging voters to reject Stephen Harper and his party’s plans to privatize Canada’s essential services.