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The Tories can feel confident of hoovering up rural and Western votes but, right now, they have precious little to offer the people in Canada’s biggest cities.

Now, had Justin Trudeau been miles ahead going into the election, Andrew Scheer would be getting plaudits for boosting the seat total by 20 and getting a larger share of the popular vote. It would have been a good second place, but it still wouldn’t erase the problems now facing the party.

Where Canada is growing, the Conservatives are (mostly) falling behind. The Tories can feel confident of hoovering up rural and Western votes but, right now, they have precious little to offer the people in Canada’s biggest cities. The task at hand for Conservatives is discovering a game plan for urban Canada (while Trudeau faces the opposite task).

So forget Andrew Scheer. The current leader might be right and he might be wrong, but until the Conservatives find something better to sell, finding a more charismatic or astute tactician won’t be enough. A salesperson selling last year’s model can only get so far.

Pace the base, this doesn’t mean offering up something that’s Liberal light. There has to be room for a fiscally conservative, socially liberal party in Canada, or at least a Conservative one that can convince Canadians that being gay and in a committed relationship isn’t a reason for moral panic. The same goes for abortion. Instead of batting about moral frames, why not put a legal framework forward to fill the vacuum? It’s time to show some courage and gore some sacred cows.

Coming to a social consensus moves the debate to economic matters (which includes climate change), where bright sparks like Sean Speer of the Munk Centre (my former colleague in the Prime Minister’s Office) are busy outlining public policy areas that require conservative approaches, areas like the future of work and regional disparities that will bedevil Canada if they don’t get sorted. The current economic settlement has undeniably served some well, while leaving others behind. It’s time to speak up.

If conservatives don’t put forward a vision for the future, they shouldn’t be surprised when those to the left of them grasp the nettle and settle things for the worse.

Andrew MacDougall is a London-based communications consultant and ex-director of communications to former prime minister Stephen Harper.

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