Talk about your fuzzy promises. The Conservatives vowed Wednesday that they would double Canada's panda population by 2016 if re-elected.
From the Conservative Party release:
“I was thrilled to welcome Da Mao and Er Shun to Canada in March, 2013,” said Prime Minister Harper. “Doubling Canada’s panda population is an ambitious goal, but with the hopeful arrival of two new baby pandas, Canadians will have the opportunity for even more panda sightings in both Toronto and Calgary.”
Er Shun, the panda currently on loan to the Toronto Zoo, is pregnant with twin cubs, the public learned earlier on Wednesday. The babies could be born in the next three or four weeks.
The tongue-in-cheek Conservative announcement was met with bemusement on Twitter.
And because we're in the midst of a heated election season, competitors Justin Trudeau and Thomas Mulcair promptly one-upped the Tory leader...um, at least their Twitter parody accounts did.
The leaders may want to proceed with caution though. While pandas are cute and adorable they are known for having difficulties reproducing. There was also a previous incident of a panda faking a pregnancy to get more treats from its human keepers.
The Conservatives have not announced any plans to help Canada's equally adorable red panda population.
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