Federal election 2006
Candidates debate issues in Moser River
MOSER RIVER - Four candidates in the federal riding of Central Nova put their best foot forward in trying to convince about 70 people at the Moser River Fire Hall Saturday afternoon to vote for them in the Jan. 23 federal election. Conservative Peter MacKay, the NDP's Alexis MacDonald, David Orton of the Green Party and - for the first time in Central Nova - Marxist-Leninist candidate Allan Bezanson - answered questions submitted by constituents.
Liberal Dan Walsh was not in attendance, and sent his regrets. The forum was organized by the Moser River Board of Trade.
In her opening remarks, MacDonald noted that she captured 28 per cent of the vote in the last election. "We're certainly feeling that we're getting even more support this time around…In this election, I think people are undecided more than ever and disillusioned more than ever with their current government."
MacDonald, originally from PEI, came to Antigonish to attend university and has lived in the riding for the past 10 years.
Incumbent MacKay said voters can make a difference in this election by exercising their democratic right on voting day. He also made note in his opening remarks of the number of legions along the Eastern Shore. "We have to do more to protect and assist our veterans and our seniors in this country," he said.
MacKay, who has represented the riding for the past eight years, said when Sheet Harbour became part of his riding he opened an office there. "That allows you to interact with your federal representative" more easily, he said. MacKay added that he hears regularly from constituents and he takes "those concerns and opinions into everything I do.
"As a member of the Conservative Party, I very much believe that politics can be a powerful vehicle for change." Stressing a collaborative approach, MacKay said the Conservatives "have demonstrated an ability to work with all parties in the House of Commons."
But he claimed the NDP's budget amendment worked out with the governing Liberals last fall had "no benefits, no results…They were all post-dated cheques." He said the NDP simply "propped up a corrupt Liberal government."
MacDonald later took issue with that assertion. "It's not propping up," she said. "It's making sure government works. It's moving beyond partisanship and getting things done for people."
Both Orton and Bezanson expressed thanks to the organizers for including them in the forum, an inclusion that has been difficult for the two fringe parties to achieve in other communities across Canada.
"The Green Party is not a government-in-waiting," Orton stated in his opening remarks, prompting a few chuckles from the audience. He made it clear that his party puts "the earth first, before jobs, before people." He noted, however, that the Green Party supports small businesses and draws support from across the political spectrum.
Orton said he's campaigning for a move away from the "human-centred world," a model in which other species are looked at as a resource. He noted that aboriginals lived as part of nature for 10,000 years. "They recognized that you can use the natural world, but you also have to preserve it."
Although new to campaigning in Central Nova, Bezanson said he ran for the Marxist-Leninist Party in four previous federal elections on the West Coast. In his opening remarks, he launched an attack on the party system in Canada, saying that political parties "have a stranglehold on Canadian elections" because they pick the candidates and the elected Members of Parliament vote according to how party whips tell them to vote.
Bezanson also noted that he has long been an anti-war activist, and has protested at the Peter MacKay's New Glasgow office in the past.
The candidates were asked a series of 10 questions, submitted to organizers by area residents. They each had two minutes to respond to each question.
When asked about daycare proposals, MacDonald said the NDP proposes a national program that is "accessible in rural communities."
MacKay also agreed that accessibility is crucial for rural areas. He said the Conservative plan to give $1200 per child under six each year directly to families will give them a choice on the type of childcare they want.
"There isn't the same kind of daycare available in rural communities," he said, noting that communities like Moser River were unlikely to get a daycare centre.
The four candidates were also asked how they would make the healthcare system address the needs of the elderly, poor and critically ill. MacDonald spoke of the NDP proposal for a national pharmacare program. And referring to the recent labour unrest at Duncan MacMillan Nursing Home in Sheet Harbour, she added, "We need to make sure we're properly paying our home care workers."
MacKay said he stands behind the Canada Health Act and his party would put in place a health care guarantee in terms of wait times. He also said the Conservatives would invest in a national cancer strategy, to "ensure that people are getting the necessary treatment and access to our health care system."
Another question asked candidates what their party would do to save coastal communities form extinction.
With regards to the fishery, MacKay said conservation efforts would continue into the future, but fishermen should have "more say into how the stocks are managed… fishermen are in many ways the best conservationists."
MacDonald agreed that government has to look to coastal communities themselves for answers. "That's where the expertise is."
This issue is a central one for the Green Party. "Industrial fishing is serving large corporate interests…at the expense of the inshore fisherman," Orton said. "We have to fish in the least disruptive way possible…the DFO has no interest in this…It means a new marine ethic."
The candidates were also asked to state their party's stand on gay marriage. Three of the candidates stated their support for gay marriage. "Government has no right to interfere with matters of conscience," said Bezanson.
MacDonald pointed out that her party has been fighting for same-sex rights for a long time. "It is a human-rights issue," she said. "It has been decided upon by the Supreme Court and decided upon by Parliament."
Peter MacKay said he feels the issue is one of equality, and noted that the Conservatives were the only party to allow a free vote on the issue. "I am of the view that you can preserve the traditional definition of marriage and treat same-sex couples exactly the same" under the law. He said it almost comes down to semantics. MacKay added that he would not want to see the issue of same-sex marriage become a major, divisive issue in the House of Commons.
"I'd rather talk about your mortgage than your marriage," he said.
On the issue of gun control, MacDonald called the Liberal's gun registry a "huge tax grab." She said those who commit crimes with hand guns have to be punished appropriately, and the NDP wants to get to the "root of the problem." She said in some cases "young people are feeling disengaged and feeling that they have no hope."
MacKay, who spent six years working as a crown prosecutor in New Glasgow, said the Conservatives would repeal the long-gun registry.
"We should be going after the Hell's Angels, not Duck's Unlimited."
MacKay said the resources spent on the registry should be put into "front-line policing." He said the Conservatives would cancel the gun registry "the day after we're elected."
Orton said he's at odds with his party over the gun registry. The Green Party says they would cancel it, but Orton says he is not personally opposed to it. He added that "one couldn't manage it in a more incompetent manner than the Liberals did."
When asked what she would do to boost economic activity in Central Nova, MacDonald talked about the need to address the rural/urban divide. "We have to make sure we're investing in our rural communities."
MacKay said the Conservative plan to lower taxes would "increase people's ability to spend their own money."
Bezanson said his party promotes the complete abolishment of income taxes, which he pointed out were established during WWI to pay for the war. "The war is over!" he exclaimed.
The candidates were also asked for their views on infrastructure needs in rural Nova Scotia. MacKay responded by saying that Canada needs a national highways plan, which would include the continuation of highway twinning. He also talked about the road linking Pictou County to Sheet Harbour, a road that has been called the "road to nowhere."
"It's not a road to nowhere," MacKay said. "It's the road to a place that is very important and that's growing," he said in reference to Sheet Harbour and area.
When asked about the cost of education, MacDonald said it's an issue "very dear to my heart."
"As you can imagine, I'm still paying off my student loans and it's been seven years since I finished my education at StFX." She said the solution lies in increasing federal transfers to the provinces for education, and in moving away from student loans, to a system of "needs-based grants" to help students pay for their post-secondary education. She added that the NDP wants to provide tax relief for former students who are paying back their student loans.
"I don't think we're going to see free education anytime soon," said MacKay. "But I think it's something that we're moving towards." He said he wanted to see a dedicated transfer based on the student population in a province, because Nova Scotia, with so many universities, has a disproportionately high number of students.
In her closing remarks, MacDonald said, "We have to get beyond arguing over who is least corrupt.
Orton, in his final statement, briefly mentioned the proposed Keltic Petrochemicals project for Goldboro, citing environmental and security concerns.
"I don't think most people know what it means ecologically to bring in an LNG tanker."
