The last all-candidates’ debate in Muskoka came to an end with Dwight as the political contenders’ last stop on Monday night.
For those who have been following the candidates around the debate circuit, there were a couple of issues raised that were not touched on at the Huntsville debate.
Student Tuition Fees
The candidates were asked specifically what their party would do about spiraling student tuition fees. Green Party candidate Glen Hodgson said the Greens would immediately cap tuition fees and debt at $10,000 as well as eliminating interest on those loans and eventually getting rid of tuition fees altogether. “We don’t believe that your ability to pay should be a barrier to your ability to learn.”
The NDP would also remove interest rates on those loans as well as capping interest rates on private loans to students, said Matt McCarthy. Canadian Action Party candidate, Gordie Merton, said his party would abolish student tuition altogether as would the Marxist-Leninist party, according to G.A. Smith.
Liberal candidate Trisha Cowie said a Liberal government would double the amount of grants available to full-time students and increase the grant money available for part-time students. She also said students would not have to pay back loans until they begin making at least $25,000/year. She said the Liberals would also invest in youth employment and create 40,000 new jobs.
Incumbent Tony Clement spoke of the Conservative record. He said tuition fees are set by the province, a debate for the next provincial election. He said Conservatives have focused on youth internship programs in Parry Sound-Muskoka and funded youth training apprenticeship programs, “to lighten their load” and better prepare youth for the job market.
First Nations
Perhaps no issue differentiates the ideologues behind the parties more than their approach to First Nations issues in Canada.
‘I’m glad that this has come up in this debate because it’s something that’s been skimmed over in others,” said Cowie. She said her party would remove the two per cent funding cap that has held the communities back for decades and equalize education and child services funding. She said her government would re-establish respect and establish a nation-to-nation relationships instead of handing down top-down legislation to First Nations communities.
Smith agreed with working with First Nations communities on a nation-to-nations basis. He also said it’s important to emphasize the plural aspect of First Nations. Clement said he could rhyme off all of the additional funding for healthier communities and economic development and education allotted to First Nations communities over the last ten years, “but the fact of the matter is the Canadian (government), and therefore the Canadian taxpayer spends 11 billion dollars a year on transfers to First Nations and Indigenous communities for these kinds of things.” He said if more money was the issue, problems would’ve been resolved by now. “We are prepared; I think we should be prepared, to invest more as long as there’s accountability for that investment. I don’t think that’s too much to ask to get the results we want because just putting more money in and expecting a different result is quite foolish.” He quickly added, as the bell rang for time allotted, that it was his party that proposed that First Nations women on reserves get matrimonial property rights “and the other parties voted against it. That isn’t very progressive.”
“Of course he means the other old-line parties,” retorted Hodgson. “To us it starts with respect for sure and I think that’s what truly is – if you’re looking for what is missing, that’s what’s been missing.” Hodgson said the Greens would immediately implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and launch an inquiry into the missing and murdered Aboriginal women. “It’s a shame that it hasn’t been launched but beyond that, Greens and our platform, we talk about creating what’s called a Council of Canadian Governments and this is what’s been lacking with our government for the past ten years. It’s co-operation, and it’s co-operation between provincial governments, municipal governments and, importantly, between our First Nations communities.” Hodgson said his party is not fond of putting out a list of what they’re going to do for First Nations communities, but rather a commitment to sit down with those communities, go over their needs and what they see as their needs “and honour those.”
Merton said his party would also call for an inquiry and said money as it pertains to First Nations communities is not always the answer. “Sometimes it takes a good heart and sometimes a good brain to sit down and talk with… we do need to take our time to honour the treaties that were set forth and right now this government is doing a horrible job at it.”
McCarthy said it’s time for a new era in nation-to-nation relationships with Indigenous people in Canada. “An NDP government would create a new committee, a cabinet level committee, chaired by Tom Mulcair to make sure that every single decision that the government makes respects treaty rights. That it respects Canada’s international obligations under the United Nations declaration on the rights of Indigenous people.” He said his government has committed to launching an inquiry into the missing and murdered Indigenous women within the first 100 days of office.
Cowie, who was given the right of rebuttal, spoke of Clement’s argument for accountability and said, “The Auditor General said that if you counted up the amount of reports that a First Nation has to send to the government to account for all their spending, you would get a report every three days. We are bogged down with accountability and administration. On top of that, we’re talking about First Nations bands receiving 30 per cent less of funding than their provincial counterparts – that’s with policing, that’s with sewage and water, that’s with child services, that’s with education, that’s across the board. We are severely underfunded and we have to close the gap.” She said the Liberals would invest more money using the Kelowna Accord during Paul Martin’s time in office, which was defeated by the NDP and Conservatives at the time.
Election day takes place Monday, October 19.
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