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Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion today accused Stephen Harper of being the only world leader who fails to see the urgency of government intervention in the growing economic credit crisis.

During a campaign stop in Sydney, B.C., Mr. Dion boasted that he was right to call last week for a short term plan to address the situation.

He noted that Mr. Harper and his Conservative Party accused Mr. Dion of panicking about the economy, yet Mr. Harper now appears poised to announce a new plan of his own.

“It's too little too late. For the last week we told him that he needs to wake up and say to Canadians that indeed we are in tough times and indeed the government will help you,” said Mr. Dion.

Mr. Dion said Mr. Harper shares the same deregulation philosophy of U.S. President George W. Bush and the result has been a lack of government oversight in areas like food safety.

“It's very interesting to see what is happening around the world,” he said when asked about recent actions taken in Germany to shore up the banking sector.

Those actions show Mr. Harper's position on the economy is the wrong approach, he added.

“Mr. Harper told me ‘You're panicking.' Is he saying that the Scotiabank is panicking today?” Mr. Dion said, in reference to a report this week warning of looming Canadian job losses. “Is he saying they're cheering for a recession, as he shamefully said when I asked to him commit to take care of all this?”

“Liberals and NDPers, we are the same, but for that, we need a strong market economy, and only the Liberal plan will deliver both a strong market economy and more social justice.”

The Liberal Leader also told reporters that he has turned to former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin for advice.

Mr. Dion insisted the economic downturn will not force a Liberal government to run a deficit or back away from the party's Green Shift plan of income tax cuts and carbon taxes.

The Liberal leader noted the carbon taxes would be phased in incrementally over four years, and the corresponding tax breaks will help give the economy a boost.

Speaking to a rally of supporters at a Victoria Community centre, Mr. Dion said the Liberal team is the best option to manage a struggling economy.

“Don't continue to vote for the Conservatives,” he said. “They're awful managers of the economy.”

After campaigning on Vancouver island Monday, Mr. Dion and Liberal candidate Justin Trudeau will be in Vancouver Tuesday as Liberals try to win over the large number of British Columbians planning to vote for the Greens or New Democrats.

Mr. Dion was campaigning on Vancouver Island in the riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands, currently held by Conservative Gary Lunn. The Liberals are hoping the seat may be winnable now that the NDP candidate has stepped down in controversy.

Mr. Lunn popped by the hotel where media covering Mr. Dion were writing their stories Monday. He said he's campaigning hard, but said the Liberal carbon tax plan is a hard sell given that the province has already imposed an unpopular carbon tax.

“People don't want a second carbon tax in this province,” Mr. Lunn said. “They're going to have a hard time keeping their seats [in B.C.], let alone gaining them.”

Mr. Dion declined to comment directly when asked about leaked excerpts from Mr. Martin's memoirs accusing former prime minister Jean Chrétien of banning large corporate political donations in an effort to hurt Mr. Martin politically.

Mr. Dion said he has no intention of changing Canada's political donation rules, which were changed to a total ban on corporate and union donations under the Conservative government.

Mr. Dion said his focus is to show the Liberal party is united. “All Liberals are united,” he said. “We're more united that ever.”