New Democratic Party

Canadians have been deeply saddened by Jack Layton’s untimely death earlier this week. Here in Ottawa – like in so many other places around the country – we’ve witnessed an outpouring of grief and reflection over this loss.

To be sure, Jack was human. Like you and me, he had his shortcomings. He was far from perfect. Many of us didn’t agree with all that he said or did.

But regardless of your politics or theology, I think we can all admire him for the positive, hopeful vision that he so adeptly articulated and promoted. Jack was for something. And, again, even if you don’t agree with all the things he was for, we must admit that there was something likeable and contagious about his ability to inspire change. Read more »

With the Conservatives winning a majority government by virtue of 6,102 votes and only 39.6% of votes cast, talk of electoral reform is surfacing once again. In fact, rallies were held across the country on May 14 calling for electoral reform and some form of proportional representation in Canada.

Meanwhile, a referendum in the United Kingdom – a key component of the coalition agreement between the Conservatives and the Liberal-Democrats – saw Alternative Vote go down to defeat on May 5 with 68% of voters opting in favour of first-past-the-post (FPTP). Read more »

Public debate about how to deal with Canada’s $53.8 billion deficit has largely focused on spending cuts. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has explicitly ruled out the possibility of tax increases (except for an increase in EI premiums), while Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has suggested a freeze on continued corporate tax cuts until Canada is in better fiscal shape. The New Democratic Party has consistently called for the repeal of corporate tax cuts to restore government revenue. In April, nearly three-fifths of senior executives polled said they believed some kind of tax increase would be necessary to deal with the deficit. So far, however, there hasn’t been much debate about this option in Canada.

While responding to the deficit and appropriately and sufficiently investing in social security may require a rise in several different taxes, today I want to take a closer look at corporate taxation. Read more »

Recently I participated in a telephone conference call with Tamarack on Nova Scotia’s poverty reduction strategy, Preventing Poverty, Promoting Prosperity. This is the third learning tele-conference in Tamarack’s series on provincial poverty reduction strategies.

Participants included Brenda Murray, director of Policy, Planning and Research with the Department of Community Services, Dr. Ulrich vom Hagen, Coordinator of the Poverty Reduction Strategy, and Tamarack’s Mark Cabaj. The discussion covered the roots and formation of the plan, the goals and targets, as well as implementation strategies. Read more »

The gap between the rich and poor is a growing problem in Canada. It affects the general well-being of Canadians and especially that of more vulnerable groups in our society, including children.

Ed Broadbent, former leader of the NDP (1975-1989) and long time MP (over 20 years) is challenging Canadians to work towards narrowing this gap. While involved in politics, Broadbent constantly advocated for causes such as this in the House of Commons, gaining much admiration from supporters across the political spectrum.

Since his resignation a few years ago he has continued to speak out about issues of poverty and social justice. Speaking at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton on October 19, Broadbent outlined some of his proposals for narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor. Read more »

This past Tuesday March 3, I had the opportunity to meet with Paul Dewar, the NDP Member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre, to discuss CPJ’s recent work on advocating for poverty reduction in Canada. On Tuesday afternoon, Executive Director Joe Gunn and I walked the few chilly blocks from the CPJ office to meet with Dewar on Parliament Hill. Read more »