"We were part the first national CBC television election townhall
on Monday, 13 November 2000!"

Although we did not have the opportunity to pose all our questions on-air, we have posted questions we wanted to ask at the townhall. Since then, we've done some research and answered our own questions. "

Name: Jennifer Hamilton

One Foot in the Bedroom

What role should the government play in our lives?

The federal government should focus on the issues directly affecting the masses. Although eliminating the debt and deficit is a huge benefit, important programs, such as healthcare, should not be drastically cut to accomplish this goal. The federal government has to complete a balancing act between all of the main issues; however, in the past, some of the issues I consider important have been pushed aside.

As a student, one of the predominant issues, in my mind, is education. Being a student at one of the most expensive Universities in Canada, increased funding is a high priority. “Canada has the third highest university tuition in the industrialized world, with average fees up by 125 per cent over the past decade (http://www.ndp.ca/platform/ default.asp?load=platform4#education).” Presently, the looming debt facing students at the end of their studies needs to be lessened. “Average student debt on graduation tripled between 1990 and 1998,to $25,000 (http://www.ndp.ca/platform/default.asp?load=platform4#education).” The government has to look at what it can do to help the future leaders of the country. The Millennium Scholarship Fund, which was created by the liberal government, is a solution for some students; however, it helps only seven of 100 students (http://www.ndp.ca/platform/default.asp?load=platform4#education). Education is a necessity not only for the individual to succeed but also for the country to improve. Therefore, education expenses should be more reasonable.

Healthcare also desperately needs to be addressed. There is a shortage of medical staff in Nova Scotia that needs to be filled. Presently, many people, such as myself, are left without family doctors. The family doctors in my town are all over booked with patients; therefore, they are not accepting new patients. Also, for a patient with a family doctor, appointments often have to be arranged weeks in advance. The medical care that is actually received is not always high quality as well. This could be due to the fact that our hospitals, in Nova Scotia, seem to be lacking in technology. Hospitals should be provided with the funding required to maintain and improve on the hospital facilities and equipment as needed. “Federal funding for health care is lower today than it was in 1994. Even with recent increases, the federal share of health care will have dropped from 50% to 13% (http://www.ndp.ca/issues/downloads/health-care.pdf).”

Recently, through research in my political science class I have become aware that there is still gender inequality in Canada. Most people assume that this problem has been fully addressed, as it should have been; however, women in the work force are still disadvantaged and often receive a lower pay for equal work. “According to Stats Canada (1998), in Atlantic Canada, women with comparable qualifications to men, earn on average only 81.3% of a man's wage with NFLD being the lowest at 78.8% and PEI the highest at 93.5%. (http://socrates.acadiau.ca/dagora/courses/pols1006/canwin/Women).” Women are not even being represented properly in politics, according to Susan Delacourt in The Calgary Herald, “Fewer women are running for the federal Liberals in this election -- so few, in fact, that the governing party is unlikely to keep its long-standing promise to run women in 25 per cent of the ridings across Canada. (http://socrates.acadiau.ca/dagora/courses/pols1006/canwin/Women).” By this time in the twenty first century, equality should have been reached.

These aforementioned issues are simply a few that need to be addressed by a new federal government; however, they are issues that are important to me. The federal government should listen to the concerns raised by the people and address them in a timely fashion.

Name: Mpho Maruping

Headline:

Question: Canada’s tertiary education institutions are among the best in the world and as a result a lot of international students are drawn to Canada and some choose to stay. How would the government then try to keep the flow of international students constant with tuition rising so rapidly?

Lead:

Response: For Acadia University alone international students are expected to pay $10331.00 for the fall-winter semester. Tuition at Acadia is the highest in the country at the moment. The Liberal government has laid out plans to help Canadian students pay for their tertiary education, which is admirable. However, as an international student my concern is how my parents are going to continue to afford my university education here in Canada.

As far as the Liberal party platform goes, there does not seem to be a plan to encourage international students to continue their interest in Canadian Universities. There are promises made by the Liberal government to make it easier for companies to bring skilled workers and their spouses into Canada. There is also the promise to move Canada’s immigration levels closer to1% of the population each year, which is all very well and good but it still does not provide an answer to my question.

The NDP platform also has plans for the reduction of college tuition fees that they say are guaranteed to benefit all college/university students. However, there is no way of determining whether or not these cuts will affect the tuition fees paid by international students. If they do apply, it would be a great relief to me and, I am certain, many of my fellow international students.

Web Title: The Liberal Plan

The NDP Platform: Commitments You Can Count On

Address: http://www.liberal.ca/site/pdf/platform_eng.pdf

http://www.web.net/~kwndp/elected/platform.htm

Description: - The site is a direct duplicate of the Liberal’s red book.

- The site is the NDP platform for the 2000 elections. It is set in an easy to read list form. The main points are expanded on further down the page in comprehensive point form.

My Government

By: Jason Bater

Subject: Political Debate, Canadian Election 2000
Keywords: Peter Mansbridge, CBC Townhall, Debate, Election 2000

"What do you want your federal government to do? What should be

the role of the federal government?":

The main phrase in that question is “your federal government”, for it is “my” government; therefore, I would like to feel like I am an intricate part of the decision making process; in essence, I would like a hightened sense of political efficacy. I am not so arragont and self-rightous to believe that the fault in this problem is completely that of the governments’; I realize that it is necessary for me to become more active in the political envirnment; however, it should be the governments responsibility to ensure that I am being active, and that I am informed and educated about the pertinent issues. The federal governmet is my employee, and I pay for its operation and existence; therefore, I would like to be included in more than a sixty-day campaign blitz. It seems (as Hamlet would say, “Nah, it is. I know not ‘seems’”) that the federal government is only interested in my opinion once every 5 (or 3.5) years. I want my government to be enthusiastic and interested in my opinion all the time; I want my government to synthesis my ideas with that of my peers to create an intelligent dialectic conclusion to what the will of the people really is. It is my opinion that these politicians are elected and then disappear from the realm of accountability until the next election where they then produce illegible statistical evidence that they did their job properly, or that their competitor did not; and I say, “What job?”. Inform me, include me; we (the government and the people) have a symbiotic relationship; we need each other to exist, so let us start working together. Let us build websites and other such information vehicles that address issues such as equality, healthcare, education and taxation. Inform us of the issues, and give us the facts; let us know when you, the government, has made a mistake; tell us why, and tell us what is being done about it; the response of the people to the truth will be overwhelmingly positive, and their forgiveness will be substantial more forthwith then if overt deception is employed. We are humans and we all make mistakes, so let us rise and fall together.

That is what I want from my government.

Government: Politics

Government of Canada- What’s New: http://canada.gc.ca/whats/whaind_e.html

-This site contains information submitted by the government of Canada in an attempt to keep Canadians educated on pertinent issues. It contains sections that address health, industrial concerns and minority issues just to name a few.

Answer: With the date of November 27th steadfastly approaching, the thought on all Canadian voters minds is the federal election. The candidates are hitting the campaign trail with the intent of not only getting their names on the lips and in the minds of the voters, but also informing he or she on the platforms of the candidate’s perspective party. Canadian voters should be evaluating what he or she wants the federal government to do and what role he or she wishes that government play in his or her everyday life. Voters should be considering issues such as eliminating the capital gains tax and providing education to individuals on welfare who cannot find jobs.

Canada is losing too many of its skilled workers to the United States, with rate of workers leaving Canada to move to the United States increasing dramatically from 24,206 in 1995-1996 to 62,131 in July 2000 (PC Party website). By eliminating the capital gains tax the government speeds up the flow of private equity funds (PC Party website). An example of the effectiveness of cutting capital gains tax would be in the United States. The United States cut capital gains tax in 1997 and the value in the stock market increased as well as their foreign investments. An Ottawa citizen was quoted as saying, “The capital gains tax doesn't’t raise much money, isn’t fair to people who’ve worked hard, and does more harm than good…”

According to a report put out by the Canadian Council on Social Development in March of 1999, there are fewer training, employment, and education opportunities available to welfare recipients than in previous years. This is highly disturbing. Wouldn't’t the government like to provide these opportunities to welfare recipients so that one day these individuals would no longer need assistance from the government? The federal government should provide free education to welfare recipients who are unable to find work. By providing such assistance, the recipient is able to seek a higher level of education in hopes of obtaining better employment opportunities. In return, the recipient becomes a contributing member of society; therefore, the government gets their money back in trade.

The issues of cutting the capital gains tax and providing education to welfare recipients, who are unable to find work, are very important and should be on the minds of Canadian voters when they are deciding how to vote in the upcoming federal election.

Website: www.pcparty.ca This website is the official website of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. It contains information on the PC Party and their platforms.

Question Period

Question –

A major problem with the fiscal, monetary and tax policies of the NDP is the generation of a stable, growing economy. How does the New Democratic Party of Canada intend to balance the investment of social spending and create a healthy economy to subsidise these large expenditures?

Answer –

This Liberal government is proposing to squander the surplus with more than $100 billion in tax cuts, mostly to wealthy individuals and big corporations. New Democrats believe Canada can be better if money is allocated to quality health care, affordable education, a safe and clean environment, decent jobs and an end to child poverty and homelessness.

The NDP’s would add $18.6 billion to federal program spending in the first year, building to $30.3 billion in 2004-5. These new investments would total $99.7 billion over the life of the next government. The plan includes a $7.9 billion increase in annual Medicare funding over the Liberal commitment, allowing the introduction of national plans for Home Care and Pharmacare and support of vital reforms in primary care. It would also restores the federal share of Medicare spending to 25 per cent (from the level of 13.5 per cent it dipped to under the Liberals). Other highlights include $4 billion in additional annual funding to support infrastructure for a clean, safe environment, $3.5 billion for a National Child Care Plan, $1.6 billion for lower tuition and interest-free loans for college and university students, $1.2 billion to support Canada's hardworking farmers, and $1 billion for a National Job Training Fund. (These amounts show the permanent annual increase, phased in over four years). We would pay down Canada's debt by $4.6 billion over four years, reducing the debt to GDP ratio from 51 per cent in 2000-01 to 42 per cent in 2004-5.

New Democrats stand for reforms to make the Canadian tax system fairer and more progressive. They fall into three categories: tax-delivered assistance to fight poverty, tax relief for low and middle-income Canadians, and tax fairness measures so that those who have the means can pay their fair share. The centrepiece is a renovated Canada Child Tax Benefit to support low and middle-income families with an increase in the benefit amount to $4,200 per child.

The NDP fiscal plan is based on conservative assumptions about economic growth and inflation. There is a commitment to a balanced budget in each year. The budget would be adjusted if necessary to maintain this balance. The timing of the tax and investment proposals is structured to build a better Canada as quickly as possible while maintaining a balanced budget and prudent debt reduction. The NDP platform would halt the decline in investments to social programs, maintaining the proportion of program spending roughly even at 11.7 per cent.

Website:

http://www.ndp.ca/platform/downloads/fiscalE.pdf

The New Democratic Party’s fiscal policy tables are located at this address.

http://www.ndp.ca/issues/

The New Democratic Party website contains this link to their platform.

Lead: As Canadians look to their future, do they see success or failure? Is the government fulfilling their duties and doing what is in everyone's best interest?

Subject: The role of the federal government. Keywords: federal government, provincial government, responsibilities, society and satisfaction

Question: What do you think the role of the federal government should be and what do you want the federal government to do?

As a young Canadian, I consider my future and the future of the older generation that made Canada what it is today. Canada appears to be a country with the extreme potential to care for it’s citizens, however the healthcare system is deteriorating, education costs are rising and there are still a large amount of people who are not only living below the poverty line, but that area homeless. All Canadians should be able to be confident that their future is secure. All people of all provinces should be treated equally despite the invisible barriers that were put to separate the various provinces.

With the surplus that the federal government has achieved, they should be able to take care of things, which have been lacking in the country. I think the role of the government is to treat everyone equally and to create reasons for Canadians to be patriotic and desire to stay in our country regardless of where we live or what class we represent. Although there are certain responsibilities, which are directed toward either the provincial or federal government, the federal government is in a position where they can provide extra assistance to the provinces. They should concentrate on aspects that will bind us to our country and allow opportunities to achieve personally and as a nation. For example, education benefits not only the one receiving the knowledge, but society as a whole. The government should make these types of thing more accessible to everyone. As we watch our healthcare system degenerate, the amount of people aging that need this care is increasing and diseases seem to also be growing. Therefore this is a time to build up the system rather then let is slide.

There are so many issues that Canadians are concerned about but it is obviously impossible to address them all at once. The government should take care of those who need the help immediately, but at the same time prepare for the future. All that can be truly expected from the government is rational, intelligent decisions with careful spending and consideration for all Canadians.

Keywords: The constitution, the legal system, civil rights, political parties, federalism

Description: This website provides information about various devisions of politics, giving links to numerous sites such as aboriginal issues, women's rights, the constitution and many more. It is created by Nelson.

Changing Government Structure and Proportional Representation

By: Thomas Peace

"Since the election call there has been an increase in discussion as to the structure of government, and whether or not the current structure is meeting the needs of the country. Discuss how you would increase public involvement and awareness in the next government, and any changes that they would make to the current structure?"

According to www.fairvotecanada.org/index, in the months leading up to the Federal Election, the issue of structural changes to government hit the floor of the House of Commons. The motion, which was brought up for debate on May 18, by Lorne Nystrom an NDP MP, states:

"That, in the opinion of this House, the government should work towards incorporating a measure of proportional representation in the federal electoral system, making use of a framework which includes:

(a) a report on proportional representation prepared by an all-party committee after extensive public hearings;
(b) a referendum to be held on this issue where the question shall be whether electors favour replacing the present system with a system proposed by the committee as concurred in by the House; and
(c) the referendum may be held either before or at the same time as the next general election."

This was the first time since 1923 that the idea of Proportional Representation had been brought up in the house. Based on the information provided on this website, it seems that there was very little consensus on this issue, as it was supported by a NDP and an Alliance MP, and opposed by three Liberals and a Conservative. Those who opposed it claimed that it would give party leaders near absolute power, however, those who were for it claimed that this already exists.

According to Dr. George Perlin, of the Department of Political Studies at Queen’s University, Proportional Representation is when “voters choose parties rather than candidates representing geographical districts and seats are allocated on the basis of the parties' shares of the popular vote. The parties, through a variety of internal processes, establish a list of their candidates before an election. Once each party's share of the seats in the legislature has been determined, those seats are allocated to candidates on the list-normally based on the order in which their names appear on the list.” Dr. Perlin’s article, found at http://cbc.ca/election2000/campaign/overview_pr_perlin.html, covers the pros and cons to this type of political system. Near the end he discusses the possibility of Canada adopting this type of Government. According to him Canada has only flirted with the idea after 1980, however, may we may begin to again if we see parliament divided regionally on Nov. 27.

Fair Vote Canada

http://www.fairvotecanada.org/index

The people who are responsible for this site are: Larry Gordon, Christopher Billows, Doug Bailie

Last Update: Unknown however it has information taken on October 17, 2000

This site discusses Proportional Representation, with a bias towards introducing it to Canadian Government.

What plan does the liberal party have to alleviate the stress that has been put upon the health care (medicare) system by all the recent cuts in funding and resources?

The Liberal Government has come under fire from critics who state that it was all their funding cuts that led Canadians away from public health care and towards a private health system outside medicare. However, the Liberal Party does accept a portion of the responsibility for the problems that are occurring in Canada right now regarding health care. Also, they have a plan in place to try to solve these problems in the future. In fact, Jean Chretien and the Liberal Party are very much opposed to health care in Canada ending up as a two-tier or private system. Jean Chretien has been quoted as saying “"I'm convinced it is important for Canada to have a system with a single tier, not hospitals for the rich and others for the poor."

Jean Chretien states that the problem of administration of daily health care could easily be passed on to the provincial governments but he accepts his part of the responsibility. Recently he threatened Alberta and Quebec by warning them that they could lose federal funding if they do not eliminate private clinics offer MRI services for a profit. This shows that he is trying to eliminate the two-tiered health care that has arose in Quebec and Alberta by forcing them Canadians back to the public health care that the federal government provides.

The Liberal Government’s plan to help medicare is a deal that was reached in September with the 10 provincial premiers that will send $21.5 billion in funding to the provinces to improve health care in the next five years. He stated “That cash will definitely help people have some hope that governments are taking care of the problem”.

Name: Jennifer Budgell

The federal government should be there for Canadian citizens. What I mean by ‘there’ is the government should take all concerns of the people into consideration and work the problems as best they can. Issues such as education, health care, gender inequality, etc. are all rising issues amongst us today. Students in particular are continually being hurt by the rising cost of tuition of post-secondary education. Student loans are available for students needing financial assistance, but the end result of this will only lead to a larger debt. There is more and more competition for higher paid jobs in the workforce and this only makes it more difficult for students to pay off their loans. We can all easily say that we want free health care, free education, numerous job opportunities for everyone, and eliminate poverty, but the fact of the matter is it does not work that way. The federal government should balance their budget accordingly and try their best to meet the economic and financial needs of the people.

The budget affects everything we do, because without the proper funding, it would be very difficult to accomplish the things we most enjoy doing. But one thing we have to be aware of is the lack of funding in certain areas. A main contributor to this could be the national debt. The current government has managed to control their spending since 1993, and as a result they reduced the spending deficit and created a surplus. This extra money has to go to reducing the national debt, and providing more funding into other important issues affecting Canadian citizens. (i.e. health care and tuition)

The role of the federal government should be one of high standing, meaning that the people should have the feeling that they can lean on the government and also feel that the government will have concern for the people and listen and address their issues as brought forth. As well, the federal government should do their best effort to keep the standard of living in Canada at a reasonably high and stable level.

The unemployment rate has always been up and down. The highest that it has been in Canada, since 1959, has been 11.9% in 1983. The lowest was 3.4% in 1966. If we take a look at the unemployment rate in Canada since 1990, we see that the highest it has been is 11.4% in 1993. The lowest is 7.6% in 1999. Looking at these statistics, it is clear that the unemployment has continued to fall since 1993, which is the year that the Liberal party was elected into office. The unemployment rate has gone from 11.4% to 7.6%. The percentages I have listed are the averages for each year. For example in 1999, the average unemployment rate was 7.6%, but the lowest was 7.0% in that year.

You Don't Say? Oh, You Do

Lead - The $5 coin. It's a ring that fits around the $2 coin. The reduction in the amount of required metal will save the Canadian government millions. Later, the $10 and $20 dollar rings will be gradually phased in.

It is expected that the $100 coin will also be usable as a spare tire if you get a flat.

Subject - Canadian Politicians slandering each other make the 2000 election a joke for the voters.

Keywords - slander; political ads; news stories

Question - Often while watching the election news in the United States, a person notices all the slander and propaganda used by the politicians. Will we begin to see this in the 2000 election here in Canada?

Response -

Yes, the day has come when the nice and polite Canadians take off the gloves and bear bare knuckles against each other in the upcoming Federal Election. It’s every party for itself as the competition of mud slinging and word wrestling begins on television, on the radio and at press conferences. Even the local news shows and papers are being blamed for some slanderous remarks. For example, Stockwell Day claims, "CBC was a dredging up of things that were dealt with months and months ago.” This is pertaining to the CBC talking about how Day’s personal and religious beliefs interfere in his political goals and aims.

Liberal cabinet minister Elinor Caplan attacked Day again when she said to a crowd in her Toronto riding that the Alliance was a reflection of those who support it: "Their supporters are Holocaust deniers, prominent bigots and racists."

Then of course is the commercial seen on television about the Alliance party’s two-tier health plan. By watching the commercial one would assume that the headline shown was actually written in the paper that it gave credit too. On the contraire, the headline never appeared in the paper. (The Liberal Party provided this ad.)

Day and the Alliance are not the only ones being slandered however. Alexa McDonough attacked Jean Chrétien when she said that his actions showed that he was obviously out of date with today’s workingwomen. McDonough also attacked Day with the next sentence: "he is out of touch with this century; he's out of touch with this planet."

Another slanderous, yet amusing, advertisement is the top 100 Greatest Lies by Jean Chrétien. Here we can see a parody of a music cassette commercial with the great singer our present Prime Minister and his backup band the Liberal Party. Top lies include the crowd pleasure about GST and the foot stomping beat of the HealthCare shuffle.

All and all, these ads might not say much for the ethical standing of our politicians, but hey, it sure makes the election interesting!

Web title - CBC Complete Federal Election Coverage

http://cbc.ca/newsworld/

Key words - slander; political ads; news stories

Description - A collection of CBC Newsworld articles pertaining to the upcoming Canadian election.

Post Secondary Education Needs Help

The NDP outlines a great plan to aid post secondary students in its election platform.

Post Secondary Education

tuition, loans, access

The current Canadian government considers Canada to be living in a “Knowledgeable Society” with high expectations of maintaining and improving this status. However, how can one justify this statement when universities are crippling with the loss of professors, lack of new books and technology and, most importantly, the ever-increasing costs of post secondary education itself? What plans can we see you future New Democratic Party make in order to aid in the above-mentioned problems?

“Canada holds the third highest university tuition in the industrialized world.” The average student in 1998 left university with a $25 000 tuition and this number has only risen and will continue to rise. The NDP party believes that the future of the country lies in the hands of it’s youth and all steps should be taken to aid in securing their academic future.

Our NDP government would work with the provinces so that tuition costs would freeze and eventually be rolled to the same tuition levels of 1995. This would be done through federal reinvestment by means of the university “core budgets. An elected NDP government would rid of the Millennium Scholarship. In it’s place we would install the Canada Education Accessibility Fund that would provide more students with financial need. The NDP would make the Canada Student Loan Program interest free. This would continue throughout the life of the loan. Finally, our elected government would deny all federal funding towards those universities who wish to become privatised.

It is with hope that all students who wish to attend post secondary institutions will have the opportunity to do so through our government.

NDP Think How Much better Canada Would Be

www.ndp.ca/platform/default.asp?load=platform4#education

tuition, force, loans, pursuing

This site is the official site of the National Democratic Party of Canada. In it, one can find the issues which is of great concern to the party, as well as the platform.

[1] Graph taken from “The Daily Statistics Canada”

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/000828/d000828b.htm

[2] Rising Tuition: http://www.geocities.com/weldontimes/opinion.html

Cameron Goodfellow

Canadian Children and Poverty

Lead: The words you never want to hear in the same sentence

Subject: Canadian Children in Poverty

Keywords: Canadian Children, Poverty, 1 in 5
Question: What should the next federal government of Canada do?

I want the next federal government of Canada to do three things. One is to decrease the amount of poverty within the country, the second is to work with health professionals and solve the healthcare issue, and most importantly I believe that they should increase the minimum wage. These are fairly difficult issues to solve and I believe that if the next federal government only centred around three main issues a lot more would get done in this country. So let’s address the issue of poverty.

On this, the 10th anniversary of the 1989 unanimous House of Commons resolution "to seek to achieve the goal of eliminating poverty among Canadian children by the year 2000", ONE IN FIVE children in Canada lives in poverty - an increase of 463,000 since 1989.

"We should essentially establish the elimination of child poverty as a great national objective, not unlike what we did with the case of the deficit."
Minister of Finance, Paul Martin, November 19, 1998

This quote is taken off of a website that is solely dealing with the purpose of eliminating child poverty within Canada, and as the quote says, we have a long way to go. So child poverty exists in Canada, and quite a lot, one in five children are below the poverty level. So what are the parties proposing to do about this?

Surprisingly, the Canadian Alliance Party has no plan to deal with this. Under their platform heading of Housing and Homelessness, they do not have a single idea filled in. The Liberals, NDP, and Conservatives do thank goodness, because this is a serious issue. The Liberals want to build 60,000 to 120,000 low incomes housing in the next 4 years. A noble cause but will they live up to the promise, and where will these houses be built? In the riding of the Prime Minister or all across Canada? The NDP want to build 25,000 in their first year as government, across Canada, not in just one region but where it is needed. The Conservative wish to enforce a legislation that will allow comprehensive measures to be taken to ensure that this poverty level of children will never reach as low as it did.

So what is the role of the next federal election? To be a responsible government and to address main issues that affect us all, like child poverty does.

Website: http://www.campaign2000.ca

Title: Campaign 2000

Description: A website devoted solely to the solution of Canada’s Children in Poverty issue.

Ernest Buist

Supply Side Thinking

Question

If the conservative party were elected, how would they maintain, or improve the economic growth and prosperity that Canada has experienced in the past?

Answer

The Conservative party has an extensive economic platform, one that would ensure a stronger Canadian economy. (The Conservative Party website can be found through the following URL: http://www.pcparty.ca)

Tax is a major issue covered in the Conservative economic platform. The party states that the population’s income is almost cut in half by the tax levied by the government. In fact the nations income is taxed at a 47% rate, which is just 3% short of half of the working populations income committed to paying taxes to the government. The Conservative party would reduce the tax burden of the Canadian people; they feel that this would stimulate even more growth and further strengthen the nations economy. They would eliminate the personal capital gains tax, excise tax on gasoline and other such fuels to lower energy costs. The party would also raise the personal exemption level as well as the married exemption level.

The reduction of the national debt is also of major importance to the Conservative party. The party would eliminate the debt in 25 years. The party plans to pay down the principle of the debt by $25 million in the next 5 years. They believe the debt is great danger and weights heavily on the youth of the country.

The NYU supply side economics website, (http://equity.stern.nyu.edu/~nroubini/SUPPLY.HTM) gives some insight to the policy issue, and implications of, supply side economics. This view is very much consistent with the Conservative party platform of tax reduction leading to a strong, growth filled economy.

Subject: Political Debate, Canadian Election 2000

Keywords:Women, Education Fees

Question :“What do you want your federal government to do? What should be the role of the federal government Canadians elect on November 27th?”

Answer: In my mind, I want the federal government to do what is best for the people at this point in time. Currently, the preeminent thing to do is to tend to the rights of women. Women in our country are treated quite unfairly, both from a professional view as well as an economic view. The women of our world today are filled with great ideas and work ethic and they should be incorporated into our important decisions.

Also, I would like to see the government strive to make education fees cheaper. The tuition of all schools has risen, and the students here at Acadia University can attest to this fact. The point is that these prices should not be as expensive because it is holding many students back from furthering their education and in turn furthering our economy.

Also, there is a need for more money to be placed into the education system. Whether it is put into the building of the school, teachers, teaching assistants, and even classroom resources. Our schooling systems are the wave of the future. In fact, the students of today are the basis of our world tomorrow. The government should make a push to improve this system and make it a viable environment to learn in.

In conclusion, in order to plead to the government about things that should and shouldn’t be done is a touchy subject. The voices of one person will do little to affect any decisions, whereas, many small people can make great noise. It seems that there is a general consensus among all students about the needs of the people. All we need now is for the government to step up, take charge and make the needed changes. So, on November 27 we should all pray that the right choices are made and that changes will be made. I hope that this government can accomplish these and other important goals, if and when they are elected.

Website:www.liberal.ca This site is the official Liberal website. It is kept and maintained by the liberal government . It is a very informative site that does a great job of advertising the liberal platform. With frequently updated pictures from the election and so forth, it was on overall excellent site.

Response from Kathleen Martin, second year Environmental Science Student

What I would like to see the government do in terms of the environment:

1- Continue process on the Federal Species at Risk Bill that died on the order paper in October 2000.

2- Require each province to have a Provincial Endangered Species Act. (Not sure if every province has one, however Nova Scotia's became law in December 1999)

Provide funding for recycling for each and every citizen in Canada. Make it law to do so. Use similar guidelines, which Nova Scotia has. It is understandable that pick up is not available for every person; however make it accessible to everyone. Suggestion would be to have a recycling depot at the grocery store. I would find it hard to believe that there is not money for such ventures. If the Toronto municipal government can find the funds to ship garbage by rail, can't the federal government find the funds to ship recyclables by rail? Or boat if people live on the island. I am thinking that it would create many jobs, divert our waste and create a better environment for future generations. Or is the federal government wanting to live for today and not for tomorrow???

My CBC Question

The Cost of tuition seems to be increasing every year. This year Nova Scotia had the highest undergraduate arts fee, which amounted to $4,408. What should be done about this?

The reason why the tuition has risen is because during the early 90’s universities decided to up their costs as an attempt to make up for reductions in government funding.

The graph below shows Government funding against Tuition fees.

[1]

What are possible solutions?

There have been “work-study” programmes which are available to students so that the revenue they receive may help off set their tuition costs. The only problem is that these “work-study” programmes may only be available to some students and not all. [2]
Another solution is getting money from the surplus that the government is “supposedly” making and put it into the education sector. The problem however is that then, their will be complaints from the other various factors.

Canadians should be proud to be world leaders in investment on public education, and should continue to strive to be unique in their efforts to provide affordable education.