OTTAWA—Stephen Harper’s Conservatives roll out a populist agenda Wednesday that they hope will carry them to the next election with promises to deliver lower wireless rates, friendlier cable bills and relief for harried airline passengers.

Governor General David Johnston will take his place in the Senate chamber Wednesday afternoon to read the speech from the throne, an outline of Conservative priorities that has been billed as a consumer-friendly pitch to win over voters.

On Tuesday, the Prime Minister’s Office offered a tease of the theme expected to dominate the document — giving Canadian families a price break, even if it means taking on big business.

“In the coming weeks and months our government will take steps to reduce roaming costs for Canadians, increase choice for television package services, and increase high-speed broadband networks in rural Canada,” an official in the Prime Minister’s Office said in an email.

“Our focus on consumer interests will increase competition in the wireless sector and help provide Canadians with more choices and access to the latest technology at better prices.”

A Conservative ad said Wednesday’s speech would lay out the party’s “new blueprint for achieving prosperity and security through these uncertain economic times.”

The ad, which hints at a possible theme — “Seizing Canada’s Moment: Security and Prosperity in an Uncertain World” — said the speech would highlight a “bold, innovative agenda.”

This speech will be Harper’s seventh since taking power in 2006 and one that the prime minister and his advisers hope will lay the groundwork for the Conservatives’ re-election in 2015.

The Conservatives are expected to give their usual focus on the economy a new twist by making consumer issues a high priority.

In a move that could elicit a strong populist response, the government may announce it will take steps to require cable and satellite TV providers to allow viewers to pick which channels they buy rather being forced to pay for bundles of channels.

“We don’t think it’s right for Canadians to have to pay for bundled television channels that they don’t watch,” Industry Minister James Moore told CTV’s Question Period on Sunday.

“We want to unbundle television channels and allow Canadians to pick and pay the specific television channels that they want,” Moore said.

Also expected is language about capping much-hated cellphone roaming fees, increasing competition in the telecom industry and giving airline passengers a better deal when they are bumped from a flight because of an airline’s overbooking.

And Moore also signaled that Ottawa wants to take aim at the higher prices paid by Canadians compared to prices in the U.S.

“It’s a serious concern and a frustration for Canadians,” Moore said, citing the example of a hardcover book that sells for $42 in Canada but goes for $36 in the U.S.

“How they just invent a $6 price gap on a product when the Canadian dollar is at near parity or sometimes at absolute parity with the American dollar,” Moore told CTV.

The consumer-friendly strategy is likely to have wide appeal and will require little if any new spending, a big plus for the Harper government.

But NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair questioned Harper’s sincerity on consumer issues, accusing the Conservatives of blocking past NDP efforts on issues like a bill of rights for airline passengers, which could be in Wednesday’s speech.

“Stephen Harper has voted against every single project that we’ve presented, whether it’s to protect . . . passengers, bank clients . . . and credit card clients,” Mulcair said Tuesday during a visit to Montreal.

Despite an oft-heard commitment to budget restraint, the Conservatives are still trying to pay down the federal deficit after pumping $47 billion into the economy over two years to combat the impact of the recent global economic recession.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is confronting an $18-billion deficit and a 2015 deadline for balancing the books. But, with disappointing economic growth and declining commodity prices leaving Ottawa with lower-than-expected tax revenues, the Harper government is being squeezed fiscally, giving it little room for new spending or tax cuts. And Harper has promised tax breaks for individuals and families — but only if the deficit can be eliminated.

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The throne speech will also stress the need for federal leadership in a campaign to address the contradiction of 1.3 million Canadians being out of work while businesses complain of a lack of skilled employees.

Efforts to break down barriers to accreditation for professional immigrants will likely be highlighted, along Ottawa’s commitment to improving education and job prospects for Aboriginals.

Plans to use tax incentives and grants to boost commercial innovation, business hires and manufacturing industries will likely get a mention in the throne speech. So will Ottawa’s $5 billion a year in spending on urban renewal.

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