Poilievre says Canadians 'fleeing' to Nicaragua, Liberals say it shows he 'doesn't have a clue'

Liberal parliamentarians are criticizing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre over a new video in which he promotes the idea that some Canadians are 'fleeing' Canada to live in Nicaragua because they can't afford a house in this country.

Liberal parliamentarians are criticizing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre over a new video in which he promotes the idea that some Canadians are "fleeing" Canada to live in Nicaragua because they can't afford a house in this country.

In a video posted Tuesday that's racked up hundreds of thousands of views across platforms, Poilievre features a woman he met while engaging with supporters, who tells him she moved her family to Nicaragua in 2022 – without any ties to the country – after being unable to afford a larger home in Canada. 

"This is nuts," Poilievre says to the camera. "A family from Cape Breton, a fishing family, can't afford to live here."

"It used to be that people would flee from countries like Nicaragua to come to Canada, but now people are actually fleeing from Canada to go to Nicaragua, because they can't afford nine years of Trudeau," Poilievre said.

In the video, the woman says she's aware of 8,000 other Canadians who moved there looking for "a lower cost of living" and "better quality of life."

"That's how badly this guy has ruined our country... This is insane," Poilievre says. "We're going to bring our people home."

Asked to comment on the Official Opposition leader's video, a pair of federal Liberal cabinet ministers panned Poilievre for talking down Canada.