Only the Green Party stands for a clear, positive alternative to the Conservatives in Trinity-Spadina. Canadians have never trusted Stephen Harper. So why trust the NDP and the Liberals, who have propped him up for so long? Why not vote for real change?
In this election, the Green Party is the only party offering serious solutions to Canada’s long-term problems, instead of trying to buy your vote with cynical tax cuts and subsidies. For instance, only the Greens stand for doing what it takes to stop climate change – which means a carbon tax. Meanwhile Stephen Harper wants to buy your vote with subsidized music lessons; Jack Layton wants to buy it with cuts to fuel taxes; Michael Ignatieff wants to buy it with … well, just make him an offer. Respect for democracy is another fundamental Green value: meanwhile the Liberals and the NDP had no problem with Stephen Harper unilaterally committing Canadian military forces to Libya – sending us to war with no prior parliamentary authorization, no public debate, and no game plan whatsoever.
Under Stephen Harper, the Canadian government has become an enemy to the environment, to democracy, to economic progress, and to Canada’s standing in the world. The Liberals and NDP have done nothing to stop him, and they’re not so different on some of the issues that matter most. If you haven’t done so yet, I urge you to look at Vision Green to see in detail what our alternatives are. You won’t find anything like it on any other party’s website. We have serious, detailed policy proposals on the big issues – including issues the other parties don’t want you to think about, like aboriginal rights, health care, child care, and the state of our oceans.
Some of my personal emphases in this election campaign will be:
- climate change: we need to get serious about global warming now — and that means a carbon tax.
- clean energy: we need to start the transition now to sustainable, safe energy sources. And let’s face it — nuclear power will never be one of them.
- our broken democracy: we need to fix our broken electoral system, and make every vote count (for detailed ideas, see Vision Green). We also need a government as different from the Tories as possible: one which will not abuse its powers, will respect freedom of information and civil rights, and will tell the truth to parliament and the Canadian people.
- transition to a green economy: We need to stop subsidizing pollution, and wasteful ‘dinosaur’ industries. Above all, we need to get the tax and regulatory incentives right, so that the creativity and competition of Canadian entrepreneurs can make us a leader in green technologies and job creation. The more we tax pollution and penalize waste, the more we can lower payroll taxes and directly boost job creation.
- the bogus ‘war on drugs’: Marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol, so let’s face the facts and legalize it. The truly dangerous drugs need to be treated as medical problems, not criminal ones.
- our crumbling cities: We need to double the gas tax transfer to cities, so that our public transportation can grow to meet its needs. We need to limit the sprawl which blankets us in smog, paralyses our roads with congestion, and destroys vital farmland. And the federal government needs to live up to its responsibilities to help fund affordable mixed-income housing.
- education: In our higher education system, both accessibility and quality are eroding. And the other parties’ tax gimmicks won’t help the students who need it most. Greens believe in funding universities and students directly: more scholarships, more bursaries, more loans (and a reformed, more fair loan system), more earmarked transfers to the provinces for education, and a big boost of funding for research. We believe in funding basic research, and treating the scientific community with respect – not trying to manipulate, distort and suppress science as the Tories have done.
Only the Green Party offers a real commitment to a sustainable, genuinely prosperous green economy. The future of our cities – and the neighbourhoods of Trinity-Spadina – depends on smart, environmentally responsible long-term planning. We can and must do better when it comes to public transportation, clean and renewable energy, infrastructure and work-life issues such as childcare. The role of the federal government is crucial in making our urban neighbourhoods work. The only thing the Harper government has done for (or rather, done to) Trinity-Spadina was the G20 – a grotesque, billion-dollar attack on our neighbourhood and our civil rights.
