This is the election issue Canada cares about most, according to Yahoo readers
Today, Canadians need to solidify their vote for the party they feel is best to govern the country for the next four years.
Justin Trudeau, Andrew Scheer, Jagmeet Singh, Elizabeth May, Maxime Bernier and Yves-Francois Blanchet are making their final attempts to gain support before the polls close on Monday night.
Throughout the election campaign, people across the country have heard a variety of promises and have tried to get answers about what each party leader will do to help Canadians.
Most important issue, according to readers
For four months, Yahoo Canada has been asking readers what their most important issue is in advance of the federal election on Oct. 21.
The results to date have found that over 20 per cent of the 20,264 responses feel issues related to taxes are most important. The next most important issue identified by readers was immigration with over 19 per cent and climate change with around 12 per cent.
“If we reduced the debt and got rid of deficit spending, then the country could do so much more for the good of the country,” one reader said in the comments.
“I would say the immediate issue for voters is how do we deal with their economic and financial anxieties with making ends meet, their low wages and salaries, unable to get a mortgage for a home, afford the price of rent, and reducing their debt. The long term but pressing issue is the environment and Climate change, we have a decade to reduce carbon emissions and transform our energy away from fossil fuels or face irreversible effects to our environment,” another reader said.
What the polls say
According to a poll from the Angus Reid Institute, an online survey of 2,100 Canadians adults between Oct. 12 and Oct. 15 (with a margin of error of +/- 2.0 percentage points), the majority of respondents (37 per cent) believe climate change is among their top two issues for the election. The amount of taxes individuals pay and access to health care were also among the top two issues for participants.
Over half of Liberal, NDP and Green Party supporters say climate change is among their top two issues for the election, while 44 per cent of Conservative supporters say the amount of taxes their pay is one of their top issues.
What party leaders have said
The Liberal Party is highlighting their support for the middle class, primarily by raising the Basic Personal Amount to $15,000 (the amount people don’t pay federal taxes on) for people earning under $147,000 a year. Another priority for Trudeau’s Liberals is climate change. The party has a goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 with legally-binding five-year milestones. The Liberals have also said money from federal corporate income tax revenues from the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion project and any profit from the sale of the pipeline will be invested in natural climate solutions and clean energy projects.
The Conservative party will reduce the tax rate on income under $47,630 from 15 per cent to 13.75 per cent by 2023 and will scrap the Trudeau government’s carbon tax. The party’s platform states that it will “attract and keep the “best and brightest” in Canada and will put an end to illegal border crossings by “closing the loophole” in the Safe Third Country Agreement.
NDP leader Singh has seen a significant surge in support since participating in the English-language debate. The party says it will implement a new one percent wealth tax on wealth over $20 million and will double the Home Buyer’s Tax Credit to $1,500. The NDP want to expand the Medicare program include prescription drug coverage for everyone by late 2020 and plans to achieve net carbon-free electricity by 2030. The party will also suspend the Safe Third Country agreement with the U.S.
