Last week federal candidates participated in a question and answer period. Upon answering a series of ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions, they were allowed to expand on one or two of their answers. The questions and answers can be found at the bottom of this page:
Conservative Kenny Chiu on allowing the port to develop farmland:
“My answer was ‘yes’ because we need industrial land for our business and our economy to develop. Having said that though, my answer is actually moderated by saying Port Metro (Vancouver) must provide reasonable and substantial justification to show that only viable alternatives and expected efficiencies and optimizations are considered, exhausted and implemented. What I’m trying to say here is that it’s easy to convert farmland into industrial land and I need to hold Port Metro accountable to make sure they have considered all the other options. For example, Richmond has also run out of residential areas in many, many areas of our city. How did we solve the problem? Densification. Now if we can solve a problem with densification of a residential area I don’t understand why we can’t densify industrial areas, for example. So I would actually provide them with the option to convert farmland for industrial use provided that they prove to me that they convince the federal government that they have exhausted all the alternatives.”
Green Laura Leah-Shaw on her support for a national housing strategy:
“The federal government needs to step up to the plate. In the 1980s we had a way for developers and investors to build rental housing that was affordable for people. Co-ops are going to lose their subsidies — I believe it’s in 2017. There’s no plan for what’s next for these people. Will that then become market housing that they can’t afford? Canada is the only country in the OECD that doesn’t have a national housing strategy. We need one. We have people that are extremely fortunate and have lots and lots of money and then we have those that we need to aid and support to help them maintain a roof over their head — and just being proud Canadians, goodness. So in order to do affordable housing that the federal government could be part of, we would have to create tax concessions for developers; make it desirable for them to build affordable housing. The Greens have a housing first strategy, which is to put everyone in a home and work on any problems they have from there. Also, look into co-operative housing, co-housing — there are different strategies being done. And if we could do some developments where we put some restrictive covenants on them so as people could not sell them for profit for about five years; they did three projects like this at UBC that were very successful. So, we need to be involved federally.”
New Democrat Jack Trovato on saying ‘no’ to fossil fuel divestment:
“The NDP has a plan to combat climate change and it’s outlined in our climate accountability change act, which has set out long-term targets at 80 per cent below the 1990 levels by 2050. This is based on science and targets that our community can keep to keep (global) temperatures two degrees below Celsius. Our short-term target is 34 per cent below 1990, by 2025-2030. By working towards these targets we can reduce and combat climate change and halt the impacts of climate change on our planet. The NDP will announce additional tools that will assist in reaching our targets and we will help communities adapt to a low carbon future. NDP climate change initiatives will be undertaken in collaboration with provinces, territories, municipalities and Indigenous governments. We will also ensure carbon pricing and the proceeds of that revenue are neutral to the federal government and reinvested in the provincial and territorial greenhouse gas reduction efforts. It would be great to turn off the taps but this would not be realistic. We need to slowly divest from fossil fuel production and increase our investment in renewable energy technology, and that’s going to take some time.”
Green Vincent Chiu on saying ‘yes’ to divesting from fossil fuels:
“My answer is absolutely, yes. Our previous investment in fossil fuels came from a commodity boom in the last decade when China was consuming a vast amount of resources, the U.S. as well. But if you look at the recent oil crash, it’s no longer profitable. Oil sands are only profitable if it’s at $100 a barrel and they are only profitable in a five-year span. Whereas right now we have the shale oil boom in the United States, Saudi Arabia clawing back their market share, we have the Iran nuclear deal giving (electrical) power to Iran and clawing back their share in oil and the tar sands are some of the most expensive and environmentally dangerous assets to produce. It’s not profitable and won’t be profitable in the future. If you look at a country like Germany, they know for the next 50 years clean tech energy is going to be the future. It’s going to be profitable and environmentally friendly and they have 11 per cent of their GDP being produced by clean tech. It’s possible for (Canada) but we have to make that investment and I don’t see why we should be subsidizing a business that is meant to die soon — that is fossil fuels. We should be responsible for the environment and also the economy. Fossil fuels are a very poor bet right now, very poor. Clean tech is the way forward. We have great access to geothermal and organic polymer photovoltaic are in mass production; they’re easier to produce now than ever. We should be investing in clean tech. We should be responsible for the environment, our society and the economy.”
New Democrat Scott Stewart on saying ‘yes’ to a federal public hearing for the jet fuel terminal and ‘yes’ to decriminalizing marijuana:
“There was no real environmental assessment done, in my mind. The NDP believes there needs to be a thorough, independent, comprehensive scientific investigation. Independent. I’m going to say that twice because I like it. It has to be fair. It has to be transparent. And then we have to work in consultation with the community, with the province. And then we have to make a decision because the folks in Ottawa aren’t living next to those tankers. In the last 10 years, the Conservatives have gutted our environmental protection laws and they’ve muzzled our experts. That’s not the way to get the job done. We have to refer to the experts to get the proper information so we can make wise decisions.
“And then the cop is going to talk about marijuana. A criminal record for some 19 year-old who smokes a joint behind the bar; Police grab him; He’s got a criminal record; He carries that through life. Should this kid go to jail for a joint? Should this kid have his career ruined for a joint? No. I’m not saying legalize marijuana; we have a ways to go to get there. The last study we have, was done by the Le Dain Commission. Do you remember that? No one does, it was done 40 years ago. We have a chance now, with it being legalized in many states, to examine how it’s fitting in and to take a good look. So now we want to decriminalize it, make it something like a ticket offence. The Canadian chiefs of police asked for that in 2013 but didn’t get it. So let’s make it a non-criminal offence, do some studies and look at further action down the road.”
Liberal Lawrence Woo on saying ‘no’ to a universal, national pharmacare plan and ‘yes’ to greater restrictions on foreign home ownership:
“I’m all for a subsidized drug plan, I just don’t agree with the universal concept. Why give a subsidy to someone who doesn’t need it? Why give subsidies to millionaires? It would be just like the child benefit plan put forth by the Conservative government. They gave it to everybody. They gave it to Justin Trudeau who has three children and he says ‘I don’t need this subsidy, so that’s why I’m going to donate it to a charity.’ So giving a subsidy to someone who doesn’t need it means we are mismanaging our resources. We are misallocating our resources and taking them away from people who need it most. So this is not the universal concept I can agree to.
“We have to be careful about what we call foreign ownership. Who are these foreign owners? We have hundreds of thousands of people coming in as immigrants and most have come in from China. These are permanent residents of Canada. They all need a place to live, to put a roof above their heads. So, these people are not foreigners. We have to get the facts straight and we don’t want to give solutions when we don’t have all the facts. This is very, very dangerous. I’m all for restricting speculators. We don’t need foreign speculators messing up the market.”
Conservative Alice Wong on saying ‘no’ to a universal, national pharmacare plan and ‘no’ to restrictions on foreign home ownership:
“Although the federal government is encouraging the provinces to work together on this matter I answered ‘no’ to this question because pharmacare and healthcare delivery is in the provincial government jurisdiction. Our Minister of Health has encouraged the provinces to work together to drive down drug costs. The federal government has assisted with facilitating that the provincial ministers of health need to come to an agreement. If the provinces wish to subsidize pharmacare costs, the provinces must pay for it. Our Conservative government has pledged it will not raise taxes. We offer support to the provinces through transfer payments, which have increased since I was in office. The federal government currently contributes $6 billion to B.C. each year to make transfer payments. This will continue to rise over the next decade and the provinces can decide how to allocate this funding.
“The reason why I answered ‘no’ to this question is because land titles and property transfer taxes is in the jurisdiction of the provincial, not federal government. Any federal legislation to restrict foreign property ownership would be ruled unconstitutional by the courts. The provincial government has the authority to restrict foreign ownership of property. For example, the government of Saskatchewan places restrictions on foreign owners of farmland. The B.C. government does not have foreign property restrictions. To ensure provincial governments have proper information the Conservative Party pledged to conduct a detailed study on foreign ownership of property, specifically in the Vancouver and Toronto areas. The B.C. government can make a decision as to whether it should place foreign property controls. I conclude that placing foreign property restrictions may cause property prices to drop, which is good if you’re looking to buy, but not good if you’re looking to sell.”
Liberal Joe Peschisolido on saying ‘yes’ to a federal public hearing for the jet fuel terminal:
“The jet fuel pipeline issue and the complete abdication of the federal role in that issue is a clear example why I believe we need two (Liberal) MPs in Richmond. Look, we all know the airport needs jet fuel but the federal government in the last several years has completely abdicated its role. There was no involvement at all. And now, at this point, the federal government gets involved by including the port authority as a decision maker on licenses. That just does not make sense. Now, what should we do here? Obviously we need to go back and have a look at it. It just doesn’t make sense to have these tankers across the river. What if there is a spill? Catastrophic environmental damage and also impact on our property values. But the impact on the environment will be severe. It’s a clear and present danger, if there was a spill. The tankers that will go along our beautiful, pristine river just doesn’t make sense. We need to find an alternative. There is an alternative out there but there’s not enough time to discuss this here.
"The other thing is about the metro port authority (Port Metro Vancouver). It is a non-arms length entity to the federal government — another reason why we need a new government. I believe the port authority doesn’t have the interest of the community at heart. We need a change in government, new MPs to change that approach.”
Election questions answered:
This year’s federal election candidates were asked to answer “yes” or “no” to 10 questions posed by the Richmond News at an all-candidate’s meeting hosted by the News and the Richmond Chamber of Commerce.
1. Do you support a well-funded national housing strategy that will maintain the existing federally subsidized co-op housing and provide for more new affordable housing?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
2. Do you believe the federal government should place greater restrictions on foreign home ownership?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido NO
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
3. Should Port Metro Vancouver be allowed to override provincial zoning to develop farmland for port purposes?
Vincent Chiu NO
Jack Trovato NO
Alice Wong YES
Lawrence Woo NO
Kenny Chiu YES
Joe Peschisolido NO
Laura Leah Shaw NO
Scott Stewart NO
4. Should the jet fuel project have had a more rigorous federal review and a public hearing via the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
5. Should Canada increase its foreign aid contributions to 0.7 of its GDP to meet the United Nations recommendation level?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
6. Should Canada divest from oil production?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato NO
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart NO
7. Do you support electoral reforms to include measures of proportional representation?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
8. Does Canada need a universal, subsidized drug plan?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo NO
Kenny Chiu NO
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
9. Should $1.1 billion in lapsed funding be re-injected back into Veterans Affairs Canada?
Vincent Chiu YES
Jack Trovato YES
Alice Wong NO
Lawrence Woo YES
Kenny Chiu YES
Joe Peschisolido YES
Laura Leah Shaw YES
Scott Stewart YES
10. Should marijuana possession be criminal act?
Vincent Chiu NO
Jack Trovato NO
Alice Wong YES
Lawrence Woo NO
Kenny Chiu YES
Joe Peschisolido NO
Laura Leah Shaw NO
Scott Stewart NO
