Compare Us to the Other Parties

Economy

Growth-based – consumption-based economy; expand trade with India and China

Green, sustainable, entrepreneurial economy; strong regional self sufficient, value-added economies

Growth-based – consumption-based economy; expand trade with India and China

Measuring Economic Health

GDP, single bottom line accounting

GDP, Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI), Triple Bottom Line accounting

GDP, single bottom line accounting

Economic recovery

Use deficit and debt to stimulate economy; back to balanced budget in 3 years; spend on big infrastructure projects (roads, bridges, ports); keep debt within acceptable debt to GDP ratio

Live within our means financially – avoid deficit and debt; pay down debt; subsidy shifting to end perverse subsidies and corporate welfare; if deficit required, it must be used to transition to green economy (retrofits, renewable energy, biking, pedestrian and transit infrastructure, rail); use economic downturn as a time to transition to local/regional self sufficient sustainable economies

Run a bigger deficit for a longer period; provide more money to retain grants; increase spending for social programs, health and education; keep debt within accepted debt to GDP ratio

Carbon Tax

Introduced at $10/tonne, accelerates $5/year to $30 by 2012; not universal – gives a partial exemption for industrial emissions from oil and gas, metals and cement because they will be subject to cap and trade; tax shifting – revenue neutral by income tax reduction, low income rebates

$50/tonne accelerating quickly to a level that reduces consumption; fairly applied to all individuals & industries; use tax shifting to make revenue neutral; investment in transit infrastructure; protection for low income people; would use cap and trade as a secondary but minor alternative

No to carbon tax; in 2009 election, campaigned on "axe the tax"; would lose the revenue and keep the income tax cuts introduced by the Liberals to make the carbon tax revenue neutral; support cap and trade, which target large emitters as primary mechanism to address climate change

Consumption Taxes

Introduced the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) after saying they wouldn’t; no consultation or debate; basic food and some basic items continue to be exempt; oil and gas exemptions undermine carbon tax; low income rebate; promoted as tax relief for major resource industries

Policy has supported a valued added tax like HST since 2005; would exempt the “goods” – bikes, fitness memberships, wellness services and tax the “bads” – fossil fuels, junk foods; promoted as a support for small business

Oppose consumption taxes

Taxation Policy

Reduce corporate tax to lowest levels in Canada; reduce income tax to lowest levels in Canada; increase service fees – tolls, MSP premiums and Property Transfer Tax; increase gambling revenue

Use consumption, carbon and pollution taxes to tax the bads; lower taxes on the goods – income, investment and employment; tax shifting; make taxes visible to discourage unnecessary consumption; halt dependence on gambling and gradually wean ourselves off gambling

Graduated income tax – tax the rich; confused rhetoric on corporate taxes; opposed to consumption and carbon taxes

Energy

Want self sufficiency which by definition really means over production so we can export energy; favour privatized energy production and guarantee favourable rates; little commitment to conservation; expand production of fossil fuels; big grid mentality

Conserve; get off oil and gas and other fossil fuels as soon as possible; end subsidies to the fossil fuel industry; diversify to geothermal, solar, wind, ocean and methane capture; regional self sufficiency through distributed network and smart grids

Build on Hydro; keep everything public; support oil and gas industry

Oil and Gas

Increase production; support off-shore drilling; support tanker traffic; support pipeline from Tar Sands to Kitimat

End subsidies; no to off-shore drilling – make moratorium permanent; no to pipeline from the Tar Sands; no to tankers; wean ourselves from oil and gas and convert to alternatives

No offshore drilling; continue subsidies to oil and gas industry; end flaring; support expansion of gas production in NE

Run of River (RofR)

Supports – part of "self sufficiency" strategy; Clean Energy Act is about expansion of this form of energy for the purpose of exporting energy

No new hydro so no to R of R; diversify into other energy; buy back licenses; supports some micro hydro that help First Nations get off diesel

Place a moratorium on R of R; honour all contracts

Independent Power Projects (IPP)

Prefers IPPs; all projects except Site C must be private; overrode and then reduced the power of the BC Utilities Commission when it called BC Hydro’s call for clean energy not in the public interest

Supports a mix of public and independent power; prefers IPPs that are small scale, co-ops, utilities; carbon tax at reasonable level to make investment in renewables more likely; institute feed in tariffs to proposed to level the playing field; use these tariffs to favour renewables by size and greenness (smallest and greenest get highest rates, sliding scale)

Introduced IPPs when they were in power; equate IPPs to R of R; now supports only public generation and transmission

Site C

Supports and is pushing for Site C; reduced need for consultation under the Clean Energy Act

No to Site C – no new hydro; conserve and diversify to real renewables (geothermal, solar, wind, tidal); make existing heritage dams more efficient

Wait for results of next phase of the process; some in caucus oppose, some say Site C if demand is proven

Issue

BC Liberals

BC Greens

BC NDP

Policing

Continue as now; tweak with regional coordination/ integrated units; supports continuation of RCMP; negotiating a 20 year contract to begin after current one expires in 2012; announced support for an independent civilian police investigation unit in response to the Braidwood Inquiry Report which will apply to municipal forces and RCMP

Change to BC Provincial Police Service; do not renew contract with unaccountable RCMP; regional policing under Provincial Police Service; strengthen police complaints; eliminate Tasers; independent civilian agency to investigate police misconduct

Continue with the current mix of RCMP and municipal forces

Crime

More police, more prosecutors, more prisons – tough on crime rhetoric

Deal with root causes; end prohibition; make harm reduction a reality; end poverty; support at risk families

More police, more prosecutors, more prisons

Health

In rhetoric supports Canada Health Act but all moving more and more toward privatized health care; maintain existing Health Authority model; measure using key indicators established at the national level

Adequate funding for acute and hospital care; transition to prevention and health promotion (one-half of budget); local health provision of health services in multi-disciplinary teams; just in time service; public system; transition from 5 Health Authorities to 14 Health Trust based on geographic and demographic factors; over time transition doctors from fee for service model to salaries; make better use of nurse practitioners for primary care

Put more money into existing model; keep it public

Health Governance

Consolidate additional power to Health Authorities; potentially reduce the number of Health Authorities based on the Alberta experience; let Health Authorities continue to function as quasi-private, unaccountable entities that are not subject to Freedom of Information (FOI); privatize services as much as possible through mandated Public Private Partnerships (P3s)

Increase to 14 regional health trusts based on geographic and demographic criteria; shift from cost containment to patient service; reduce waste; implement reforms to reduce costs

Make current authorities more accountable

Training

Greater role for industry; relevant to green economy; assess programs for relevance; locate programs where real and potential employment exists

Issue

BC Liberals

BC Greens

BC NDP

Poverty

Claim they are doing lots and have increased budget for poverty reduction; refuse to set targets; increased shelter beds; purchased Single Room Occupancy hotels for hard to house; provide income and shelter assistance but contain amount

Implement a Guaranteed Income supplement to put everyone above the poverty line; set aside 1% of budget to purchase housing for rental; buy into stalled and incomplete projects to increase immediately rent geared to income housing stock

Increase minimum wage to $10; build social housing using $250 million fund; set targets for poverty reduction

Child Welfare

Maintain the current system; undermine the work of Child and Youth Advocate

Support families at risk; keep families together or reunite quickly; put resources into assisting families at risk so we reduce the number of children taken into care; assist families to overcome multigenerational family dysfunction; work closely with the Child and Youth Advocate to change from a punitive to a supportive attitude toward families at risk; special attention to and programming for Aboriginal issues

Put more money into the current system; support the work of the Child and Youth advocate

Advanced Education

Tuition increases at cost of inflation; under fund programs; privatize (direct and indirect)

20% reduction in tuition; 5 year forgiveness of tuition for those who work and pay taxes in BC; increased grants to institutions so they don't have to depend on private money

Freeze tuition; more grants; look at the potential to increase tuition when economy improves

K-12 Education

Download costs without adequate revenue; undermine School Boards; full-day kindergarten for all 5 year olds by 2011; test for skills achievement

Find alternate to per student funding model; provide choice in schooling; challenge status quo that diminishes educational opportunities for learning disabled, gifted learners, older teens and BC First Nations; use new insights into optimal learning and best practices from science; teach knowledge that will allow students to adapt to the impact of global ecological, social and economic shifts

Provide extra funding to public school boards; reduce class sizes

Issue

BC Liberals

BC Greens

BC NDP

Wood Product Industry

Continue with industrial forestry model; support the large multinational forestry companies; renege on the Tree Farm License Agreements by letting companies remove private holdings from forestry without penalty; expand to Asia to make up for loss of US markets; support industry consolidation; transfer oversight to industry

Switch to a sustainable model based in restoration, biodiversity and selective logging; implement tenure reform so ½ of all forests are controlled locally and by First Nations; regional competitive log markets; value add to wood locally; regional oversight boards

Continue industrial forestry model; require forestry companies to live up to their obligations under the Tree Farm License Agreements; expand to Asian markets

Raw Log
Exports

Supports

Ban

Curtail – reduce by a percentage

Gateway

Supports

Stop

Supports – change route of road to preserve farm land

Corporate Responsibility

Existing Act – primary purpose of corporation is to make money; accepts large amounts of money from corporations

Amend Business Corporations Act to include a Social Contract (Corporate Social Responsibility) based on Global Green Charter

No policy