Why this change now?

They buried it previously because they didn't want to give their message legs.

What are they up to?

Either:

1. They're trying to delegitimize the argument that Trudeau is irresponsible for calling an election in a pandmeic using the logic that Trudeau's critics don't seem to mind gathering for anti-lockdown protests. This however doesn't explain why they're covering France all of a sudden.

2. They're planning to spin the anti-lockdown movements as an emerging threat to public health/safety so they can then link it to the CPC, creating the perception that voters must re-elect Trudeau in order save Canada from this emerging covid-terrorist superspreader threat. This would explain why the CPC are telling their candidates to stay clear of that subject matter. They can outmaneuver this ploy by denying the LPC/media any quotable links between the CPC and the "covid superspreader terrorists".