Canadian PM candidate supports freedom to use Bitcoin as money

cointelegraph.com:

The Canadian Conservative Party candidate for Prime Minister, Pierre Poilievre, has come out in support of allowing Canadians to use Bitcoin (BTC) as legal money in the country.

The YouTube channel BITCOIN posted a video on March 29 of Poilievre saying that the people of Canada need “more financial freedom” before a crowd of about 100 at a local restaurant. He added, “That includes freedom to own and use crypto, tokens, smart contracts, and decentralized finance.”

Earlier this year, the Canadian government led by Liberal Party Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had taken a hard-line approach against crypto in response to the Freedom Convoy protests that took place in Ontario. In January and February, Canadian officials froze bank accounts of protestors and attempted to block all donations to the truckers, including those made in crypto.

Conservative leadership candidate @PierrePoilievre buys chicken shawarma from @TheRealTahinis using bitcoin Lightning Network. Transaction cost was one satoshi, which the consumer covers. This was the first bitcoin purchase at Tahini’s. pic.twitter.com/T5hVlY4fy0

The Executive Director of the Canadian Blockchain Consortium (CBC) Koleya Karringten told Cointelegraph today that right now “it’s a hostile environment from the Liberal government towards crypto,” which is “due to a lack of knowledge, understanding, and regulatory clarity.”

Karringten believes there are now more crypto holders following the complications caused by PM Trudeau invoking the Emergencies Act in February. The non-profit organization Catalyst said on Feb. 23 that those complications may have resembled a bank run.

Despite his fervency, Poilievre’s support of cryptocurrency may still only resonate with a small group of Canadians.