Federal Election 2019 – NDP Platform

As a non-partisan organization, OSPE considers it a civic duty for all Canadians to vote based on a clear understanding and knowledge of the platforms of each political party.  In the upcoming weeks, OSPE will extract information from each official party platform on issues impacting the engineering community.

Today, OSPE is showcasing the NDP’s 2019 electoral platform. Not sure if you’re registered to vote? Click here and make sure that you can cast your vote on Monday, October 21, 2019.

ndp logo

Energy

  • Abandon the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project
  • Establish a new Canadian Climate Bank, in order to boost investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and low carbon technologies and help provinces inter-connect power grids and introduce smart grid technology

Environment

  • Continue carbon pricing, including rebates to households that fall under the federal backstop plan
  • Ban single-use plastics by 2022 as part of a broader waste reduction strategy
  • Commit to retrofit all housing stock across the country by 2050
  • Procure from Canadian companies producing clean technology, ensure that federal buildings use renewable energy, and move the vehicle fleets of the federal government to electric by 2025
  • Electrify transit and other municipal fleets by 2030
  • Work with provinces and municipalities to help them build towards fare-free transit
  • Create a Centre of Excellence for research and development of Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEV) and support Canadian manufacturing of batteries, energy storage solutions, and alternative fuels like biofuels made from waste
  • Extend federal incentives for ZEVs and waive the federal sales tax on ZEV purchases, growing these incentives up to $15,000 per family for made-in-Canada vehicles
  • Expand charging networks for ZEVs across the country and help homeowners cover the cost of installing a plug-in charger
  • Set a target to power Canada with non-carbon-free electricity by 2030 and move to 100% non-emitting electricity by 2050
  • Eliminate fossil fuel subsidies and redirect these funds to low carbon initiatives
  • Overhaul the process for reviewing major projects to ensure adequate time for public consultation and provide core funding to support Indigenous communities participating in these processes.
  • Protect 30% of Canada’s land, freshwater, and oceans by 2030
  • Implement a national freshwater strategy and work with the provinces and territories to protect our waterways under international agreements

Infrastructure

  • Support the creation of high-frequency rail along the Quebec-Windsor corridor
  • Increase the amount of help the federal government provides to communities to adapt to climate change and rebuild infrastructure when disasters happen
  • Put into place a permanent, direct, allocation-based funding mechanism for modern public transit across the country
  • Work towards fare-free transit

Indigenous Peoples

  • Make investments required to ensure clean water and lift and drinking water advisories by 2021
  • Support Indigenous-led water management training programs and water system operations as an immediate priority
  • Implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
  • Commit to invest $1.2 billion over three years in Jordan’s Principle, which helps ensure that all First Nations children can access the health, social and education supports and services that they need, when and where they need them

Housing

  • Create 500,000 units of quality, affordable housing in the next ten years
  • Set up a dedicated fast-start fund to streamline the application process of co-ops, social and non-profit housing
  • Waive the federal portion of the GST/HST on the construction of new affordable rental units
  • Implement a Foreign Buyer’s tax on sale of homes to individuals who aren’t Canadian citizens or permanent residents

Taxes

  • Increase the capital gains tax inclusion rate from 50 to 75%
  • Establish a new 1% wealth tax on wealth over $20 million
  • Increase the top marginal tax rate by two points to 35% for those making more than $210,000
  • Close stock option loopholes and crack down on shell companies operating in tax havens
  • Close tax loopholes that favour web giants
  • Roll back the Conservatives’ corporate income tax cuts by 3% points to 2010 levels (18%)

Jobs and Skills Training

  • Put in place a new tax credit for graduates to work in designated rural and northern communities and make it easier for employers to hire and retain the workers they need
  • Require employers to spend at least 1% of payroll on training for their employees annually
  • Put in place a federal minimum wage of $15/hour
  • Ban unpaid internships outside of education programs

Health Care

  • Create a national pharmacare program that provides universal, public, comprehensive coverage to everyone in Canada by 2020
  • Work with provinces to include dental care in the Canada Health Act

Research and Innovation

  • Develop a National Aerospace Strategy with the purpose of helping small and medium-sized aerospace companies increase capacity and scale up to compete globally

For the full NDP Platform, click here.

 

What do you think of the federal NDP platform? Are these promises attainable?

As a part of our Federal Election coverage, OSPE and its Task Forces have put together a comprehensive National Strategy that contains recommendations from professional engineers for all political parties to consider ahead of the 2019 Canadian Federal Election. Read the full document here. 

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Sam Anderson

    typo in intro paragraph “Green Party”

    1. STAFF

      Thanks for the correction!

Leave a Reply

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.