? making workplaces safer
We’ll make jobs our first economic priority by:
? setting targets for jobs
? rebuilding programs like health care
? broadening and deepening our capital investment base
? providing leadership on job training
? easing the adjustment for people affected by the changes
? strengthening community economic development
? providing access to capital
? supporting local development agencies
We’ll provide real help for working families by:
? doubling the Child Tax Benefit
? investing in housing
? creating better opportunities for children and youth
? providing early child care and education
? making post-secondary education affordable
? reforming EI
We’ll negotiate fair trade deals by:
? making sure rules are in place to protect human rights, core labour standards, cultural diversity and the environment
? eliminating NAFTA rules that let foreign corporations sue democratically-elected governments
We’ll stand up for Canadian communities by:
? protecting the family farm and the environment
? supporting sustainability in our forestry and fishery
? beginning to rebuild the CBC
? making our communities safer
We’ll see that low and middle-income families get a fair share by:
? doubling the Child Tax Benefit to $4,200
? making sure no individual who makes $15,000 or less pays federal tax
? increasing the GST credit
We’ll fight for equality for all Canadians by:
? setting up new anti-poverty and anti-discrimination measures
? protecting programs that support minorities
? working with Aboriginal communities
? supporting programs for persons with disabilities
We’ll build a stronger Canada in a stronger world by:
? enhancing the role of Canada’s forces as international peacekeepers
? working to address the roots of conflict
? increasing our international aid
? working to reform the IMF and the World Bank
We’ll develop responsive federalism by:
? working cooperatively with other governments
? setting up a new deal for our cities
? making government more accountable
New Democratic Party of Canada
900 – 81 Metcalfe
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 6K7
Phone: (613) 239-3134
Fax: (613) 234-1304
E-mail: ndp2000@alexa.ndp.ca
COMMUNIST PARTY PLATFORM OVERVIEW
A People’s Alternative for Canada!
Defend and expand health & social programs
Reverse federal cuts in transfer payments for health, education and social
welfare, and preserve Canada-wide standards. No to privatization – block
Alberta’s Bill 11 and other provincial attacks on Medicare. Rescind the
Drug Patent Act (which guarantees mega-profits for the big
pharmaceuticals, and high costs for health care), and introduce universal
Pharmacare and Denticare. Immediately establish an accessible,
affordable and non-profit childcare and infant care program across
Canada – no more delays! Stop the war against the poor, such as
“workfare” and welfare cutbacks. Spend at least 1% of the federal budget
on social and non-profit housing. Stop the “war on drugs”; treat addiction
as a medical issue, not a criminal act.
Jobs with decent pay
Legislate a 32-hour work week with no loss in take-home pay; ban
compulsory overtime, and raise minimum annual paid vacations to four (4)
weeks. Lower the voluntary pension age to 60, and substantially increase
pensions. Extend benefits to part-time, home-based and contract workers.
Raise the federal minimum wage to $10.50/hour. Stop Ottawa’s theft of
the EI fund; set EI benefits at 80% of previous earnings to all unemployed
workers. Develop environmentally-sound primary industries and
manufacturing; rebuild social programs and Canada’s decaying municipal
infrastructure.
Stop Corporate Globalization – Defend Canadian sovereignty
Curb the power of transnational corporations; Cancel NAFTA and pull
Canada out of all corporate-driven trade and investment negotiations,
such as the FTAA, the WTO and the GATS. Develop mutually beneficial
trade agreements that protect the environment and respect Canadian
economic, social and cultural sovereignty. Ban water exports. Restrict
capital flight and job loss with currency exchange controls and strong plant
closure laws. Block foreign takeovers. Put the banking and insurance
system under public ownership and democratic control. Reverse the
privatization of Air Canada, PetroCanada and CN Rail. Restore funding
for the CBC, the arts and Canadian culture.
Tax the greedy, not the needy
Legislate progressive tax reform based on ability to pay – no ‘flat’ tax!
Scrap the regressive GST. Raise taxes on the wealthy and eliminate taxes
on incomes below $30,000; apply taxes to 100% of capital gains, and
increase other taxes on big corporations and banks. Close tax loopholes,
collect deferred corporate taxes, and tax the speculators through
introduction of the “Tobin tax”. Impose a special “windfall profit tax” on
large oil and other resource companies. Establish wealth and estate
taxes.
Democratic constitutional reform – Convene a Constituent
Assembly
Resolve the crisis of Confederation and build Canadian unity on a new
basis. Elect a democratic Constituent Assembly to draft a new
constitution, based on an equal and voluntary partnership of the First
Nations, Quebec, and English-speaking Canada. Recognize Quebec’s
national right of self-determination, and the inherent rights of Aboriginal
peoples to self-government and just settlement of all outstanding land
claims, based on proposals of the 1996 Royal Commission on Aboriginal
Peoples.
Full equality for women
Close the wage gap – full pay and employment equity for all working
women. Protect women’s reproductive rights; provide publicly funded,
accessible, quality abortion services in every province, and guarantee
their security. Ensure over-the-counter availability of RU-486 (the “morning
after” pill). Stop violence against women. Restore adequate funding for
NAC and other women’s groups, crisis centres, and transition houses.
Endorse the demands of the World March of Women to end poverty and
violence against women.
A future for youth: education and jobs
Increase federal support for education at all levels. Roll back and then
eliminate tuition fees for post-secondary education, and stop the
privatization and corporatization of our schools, colleges and universities.
Shift from loans to grants for student assistance. Expand youth access to
training and apprenticeship programs. Create decent-paying jobs and
improved services for youth, not more prisons and ‘boot camps.’
Fight racism and discrimination
Strengthen employment equity programs for people of colour, Aboriginal
peoples, and people with disabilities. Scrap the “head tax” on new
immigrants. End discrimination against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and
transgendered persons; guarantee the marriage and adoption rights of all
Canadians, regardless of sexual orientation. Promote the rights of people
with disabilities for equal access to all social, medical and educational
facilities and services. Strengthen and enforce laws against hate
propaganda (including on the internet), hate crimes and neo-fascist
groups, and prosecute war criminals living in Canada.
Protect & expand democratic rights
Eliminate Election Act barriers against smaller political parties, and
provide fair media access for all parties and candidates. Enact a new
electoral system to combine election of individual MPs with proportional
representation, and the right to recall MPs. Defend the right to dissent -
stop government spying and police attacks against protesters and
progressive organizations. Strengthen civilian control over the armed
forces and police.
A Bill of Rights for labour
Enshrine the constitutional right of all workers to organize, bargain
collectively, picket, strike and take collective political action. Ban
strike-breaking and scabbing. Strengthen labour laws and employment
standards; block anti-labour “right-to-work” laws.
Save the environment
Put the environment ahead of corporate profit. Impose stronger penalties
on polluters. Make Canada a world leader in reduction of ozone-depleting
gases and hydrocarbons. Phase out nuclear power, and reduce reliance
on fossil fuel consumption; expand energy saving programs and
alternative power sources. Stop destructive forestry practices, such as
clear-cutting. Require labelling on genetically-modified food products.
Create jobs through protection and cleanup of the environment. Increase
research on the long-term effects of human economic activity.
Peace, disarmament and global justice
End Canadian participation in US/NATO military aggression. Reject the
mis-named policy of ‘humanitarian interventionism” – respect the UN
Charter and international law. Slash the military budget by 50%; convert
military to civilian jobs. Pull Canada out of NATO and NORAD. End
economic sanctions against Iraq. Support negotiations for the abolition of
weapons of mass destruction and arms exports. Support fair and mutually
beneficial international trade. Strengthen friendship and trade with Cuba
and other socialist countries.
Communist Party of Canada
290A Danforth Ave
Toronto, Ont.
M4K 1N6
Ph.(416)469-2446
Fax.(416)469-4063
? 2000 Communist Party of
Canada
GREEN PARTY OVERVIEW
The Green Party would redirect and reassign government funds to support the transition to
sustainability through the following measures:
? implementing the Precautionary Principle, and ensuring that corporations are
responsible for their products from cradle to grave
? enforcing the Polluter Pay principle by requiring polluters to pay compensation for
previous destructive use of resources
? establishing programs that will phase out harmful activities, coupled with a fair and just
transition program for workers and communities A Renewable Energy Future Clean and
renewable sourc