Image Credit: SUBMITTED/338canada.com
October 03, 2019 - 4:49 PM
NORTH OKANAGAN - Voters have just less than three weeks to decide on who they want to represent them in parliament and if polls have it right, it appears nothing is set to change in the North Okanagan-Shuswap.
The election projection from 338canada.com has the incumbent Tory MP Mel Arnold in the number one spot and set to win the race with 42 per cent of the vote. The website pegs the Liberal candidate Cindy Derkaz at 21 per cent, closely followed by Green candidate Marc Reinarz at 17 per cent and the NDP's Harwinder Sandhu closely behind at 16 per cent.
The 338Canada project is a statistical model of electoral projections based on opinion polls, electoral history of Canadian provinces and demographic data.
Given that there’s still time to decide, we want to offer you a bit more insight into what these candidates have to offer.
How tuned in are local candidates to the issues you are dealing with every day?
Do they understand what’s causing your neighbourhood to flourish or suffer?
We wanted to know, so we asked what they believed to be the biggest issue in their riding and what, if anything, they could do about it?
Conservative candidate Mel Arnold
What is the biggest issue you see in your riding and what, if anything, can you do about it?
When talking to people across the North Okanagan- Shuswap, cost of living is the issue that I hear about the most. Young adults entering post-secondary, young families trying to make ends meet and seniors living on fixed income tell me it is increasingly difficult to get by because living costs and taxes are increasing.
Conservatives are committed to implementing the Universal Tax Cut, eliminating GST from home heating costs and introducing the Green Public Transit Tax Credit to help Canadians get ahead.
The Universal Tax Cut will reduce tax on income under $47,630 from 15% to 13.75% allowing individuals to save up to $440 annually or over $850 per year for a two-income couple earning average salaries.
Our Children’s Fitness Tax Credit will allow parents to claim up to $1,000 per child for fitness or sports-related expenses and parents of children with disabilities will be able to claim an additional $500 per child, per year. The Children’s Arts and Learning Tax Credit will allow parents to claim up to $500 per child for expenses related to arts and educational activities.
Conservatives will also increase federal contributions to Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP) from 20 per cent to 30 per cent for every dollar invested up to $2,500 a year.
We will cut federal income tax from EI maternity and EI paternal benefits through a non-refundable tax credit of 15 percent for income earned under these two programs.
For our seniors, a Conservative government will increase the Age Credit by $1,000.
NDP candidate Harwinder Sandhu
What is the biggest issue you see in your riding and what, if anything, can you do about it?
Affordability.
In our community as well as most communities in Canada the average person is finding it harder and harder to afford the basics. I want to be able to help that single mother be able to afford those basics so she can put her child into sports or so that senior doesn’t have to choose between medication or food. Our plan will create 500,000 units of quality, affordable housing, Co op housing, and non-profit housing. We will double the First-time home buyers tax credit to $1500, we will also give rental rebate of $5000 a year to Canadians who are having to pay more
than 30% of their income towards the rental. We will put in place 15% Foreign Buyers tax across Canada. We will invest over 1 billion dollars annually to grow childcare services across the country and we’ll enshrine access to high quality, public childcare for everyone in Canada Law. We will cap and reduce tuition fees and going to make student loans interest free, health care that covers you from head to toe with dental, hearing aids etc
Green candidate Marc Reinarz
What is the biggest issue you see in your riding and what, if anything, can you do about it?
Chlorinated drinking water: Many jurisdictions around the world move away from chlorination of drinking water. Through my function as Trustee on the Stepney Waterworks District in Spallumcheen, I am already far on the way to apply that here in the North Okanagan - Shuswap. I’m in touch with health authorities locally, and in places where they have implemented changes to using UV and Ozone systems instead. I also have managed to have Health Canada include the following clause on their web-site. Read half way down the page under “The risks…”: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/healthy-living/your-health/environment/drinking-water-chlorination.html
With the persistent lack of quality drinking water in remote regions of the country, I will make realizing this my mission nationally, once elected: clean and safe drinking water for every individual in Canada.
As I was asked for only one issue, I will not get into the homelessness and mental health subjects here.
CPP candidate Kyle Delfing
What is the biggest issue you see in your riding and what, if anything, can you do about it?
Youth leaving for better jobs abroad. A Lack of long-term quality jobs, the possibilities of mill shutdowns are just a few issues we can address in the North Okanagan.
There are many policies in the PPC platform that will drive economic development in the North Okanagan Shuswap, from tax incentives for small business to our intent to negotiate free trade deals including the softwood lumber dispute and removing interprovincial trade barriers which will let commodities and professionals to move freely across provincial lines. The PPC has real policies that will help the towns and cities within the North Okanagan grow and retain more meaningful employment.
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