Their new leader, Justin Trudeau,
son of former prime minister
Pierre Trudeau, has the goal of
strengthening the middle class
and growing the economy, but
plans to run a deficit budget.
This is something unheard of
from the Liberals, who pride
themselves on the history of
Pierre Trudeau’s ability to keep a
balanced budget while growing
the economy.

In fact, of all the federal
leaders in the election, only
Trudeau talks about running a
budget deficit. This has been
much to the disadvantage of
the Liberal party as the federal
budget has shown profit in the
last year. The other leaders
have used this miscalculation
to highlight Trudeau’s lack of
the experience and knowledge
needed to run the country.

His performance at the Globe
and Mail’s Leaders’ Debate did
little to support his cause, as
he had rapid-fire offence, but
lacklustre defence. Even though
he was able to point out flaws in
the Conservative’s and the NDP’s
plans, he was unable to defend
his own party’s plan to run a
deficit budget until 2019. His
attitude on pipelines, which is to
allow them to be built in BC, was
criticized at the debate by both
the Green Party and the NDP.

Despite his weak
performance, Trudeau and his
party are suggesting the most
dynamic changes. Unfortunately,
he is also the least factual with
his suggestions. His goals are to
bring better child-care to middle
class families, raise child benefit
cheques, lower small business
taxes, and get rid of income
splitting, but he has not yet
provided real numbers to support
these goals.

The Liberals have also
garnered criticism for their
ever-changing stance on Bill
C-51, the “anti-terrorism bill.”
Originally, they opposed the bill,
but ended up helping bring it to
life. Now, they say that the bill is
necessary to protect the freedom
of Canadians, but needs to be
changed to protect their rights.
However, Trudeau has vowed to
repeal Bill C-24.

When asked about ISIS and
the Syrian refugees, Trudeau
toed the middle line. He said that

 

  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

he wants to stop the bombing
missions in Syria, but leave the
troops there to train the local
forces. He also spoke about
helping refugees, but did not
specify his plan for them.

Trudeau and the Liberal
party represent dramatic change
for Canada. His plans for the
future involve heavily investing
in Canada by sacrificing the idea
of a balanced budget.

The Green Party of Canada:

The Green Party is a fairly
young democratic party led by
Elizabeth May, often seen as a
side party to the big three. Some
have even classified them as a
grassroots party that has refused
to die out. Nonetheless, the
party has continued to function
and has slowly strengthened
its position in the House of
Commons, despite often being
excluded from debates. The
most recent example of this
exclusion was the Globe and
Mail’s economic debate. May
made up for this by turning to
social media and responding to
questions via Twitter, drawing
the attention of the masses with
her innovation.

In her interview with
Mansbridge, May recognized
her party’s role in the coming
government, stating that her
party will remain in opposition
no matter who is elected. She
believes that “[w]hen the Greens
do well, Conservatives don't,”
referring to previous elections
where when the Green Party
accumulated upwards of 1 million
votes, the Conservatives had a
minority government.

The Green Party’s platform
involves little changes to the
economy, but big changes to the
way Canada runs. These changes
include investing much more
in sustainable energy sources,
and creating environmentally-
friendly infrastructure. The
party’s no-tolerance stance on
pipelines is most popular in
BC, which is where much of the
party’s support comes from. It
endorses government-paid post-
secondary education, which
has skyrocketed the party’s
popularity among youth, but the
plan has received criticism due
to its high cost and the party’s
lack of a strategy to make up for

 

that deficit. It also endorses
the legalization of marijuana.
May is in agreement with the
NDP on the topic of both Bill
C-51 and C-24, as she plans

to repeal them both as a top
priority.

May is a diplomatic leader
most interested in forming a
coalition to get rid of Harper, and
to get the Liberals and the NDP
to work together—with little
SUCCESS.

The Green Party advocates
change for a more green
economy with better sustainable
infrastructure and the party
greatly focuses on investing in
the future of Canada. The
Greens are the only party
that have a strong, clear
stance on pipelines in
BC, and actively fight to
get it recognized. With the
party’s stance on tuition, it
is more in touch with youths’
needs than other parties.

At the end of the day,
there is no “correct” party
to vote for. Each party
represents its own values
and has its own priorities.
Hopefully, this article has
helped you understand the clear
differences, and even some
of the similarities, of these
political parties.

Early voting starts on
October 7 and closes on
October 10, while regular
voting is on October
19. Register online at
elections.ca and get ready
to vote. The winner of
this election will define
Canada for the next five
years. Make sure your
voice is heard.