Just in time to give his political foes ammunition to use during Thursday's leaders debate in Vancouver, an eight-year-old speech has resurfaced, threatening to trip up Conservative Leader Stephen Harper.

The 1997 speech was delivered in Montreal to a meeting of the Council for National Policy, an obscure right-wing American organization.

In the speech, which gathered dust on the organization's website until an anonymous tipster recently alerted the Canadian Press to its presence, Harper refers to Canada as a "Northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term."

• Full text of speech

He also tells the Americans "your country, and particularly your conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people in this country and across the world."

In his 1997 speech, Harper also poked-fun at the New Democrat Party, the same group he said Tuesday he would cooperate with in a possible minority government.

"The NDP could be described as basically a party of liberal Democrats, but it's actually worse than that, I have to say. And forgive me jesting again, but the NDP is kind of proof that the Devil lives and interferes in the affairs of men," said Harper in his speech.

He then continued to say the NDP is "explicitly socialist. On social value issues, it believes the opposite on just about everything that anybody in this room believes."

Harper was not an MP at the time he made the speech. He was working for the then-Reform Party as a senior advisor.

While Harper has not publicly addressed the comments, senior officials within his party have attempted to mitigate any potential damage.

Conservative strategist Tim Powers told the Canadian Press the comments were made in a spirit of familiarity and jest -- and indeed Harper refers to the humorous intention of his comments several times in the speech -- and said the speech has no relevance to today's Conservative Party or its policies.

Powers likened the comments to irreverent remarks made by Governor General Michaelle Jean and former prime minister Brian Mulroney at a recent press gallery dinner.

"It was very familiar, it was very much tongue-in-cheek and that's the nature of that particular speech even as a private citizen," Powers told the Canadian Press.

With Canada/U.S. relations often in the forefront of the current election campaign, it's not surprising the Conservatives are playing down the comments.

Harper was recently praised in a major U.S. newspaper editorial as one of the most pro-American leaders in the western world. He quickly replied to the editorial in a letter that laid out his political differences with U.S. President George W. Bush.

Jamey Heath, NDP spokesperson, told the Canadian Press Harper's comments are relevant to the election, but said they are pretty low on the list of issues voters should be concerned about.

"I think Canadians have figured out where Stephen Harper stands on issues and I'll let Stephen Harper speak on where he stands today," Heath said. "I think there are more important things to talk about in the election campaign than an eight-year-old speech from someone who's failed to deliver a thing in this Parliament."

Conservative Senator Marjory LeBreton, like Powers, maintained the speech was intended to be humourous but added:

"He was a private citizen (then) and I imagine, in today's context, if they were misunderstood it's something that perhaps he wouldn't say today.''

When asked which public image -- the 1997 one or the 2005 one -- Canadians should believe is the real Stephen Harper, LeBreton answered:

"What Canadians see in Mr. Harper today is exactly what Mr. Harper is.''

With files from the Canadian Press