Ottawa Centre issues on the table
Federal candidates talk about the deficit, going green and what’s important locally
We asked the main federal candidates in the Ottawa-area ridings to answer several questions so voters could get to know them better and get a sense of where they stand on important local issues.
Candidates’ replies to the surveys for Ottawa Centre appear below in alphabetical order. They have been lightly edited for clarity and to accommodate print space. Results of the remaining surveys will appear in the Citizen in the days ahead. For more on what candidates had to say, visit ottawacitizen.com.
The riding:
Liberal Catherine McKenna won the riding with 32,111 votes in 2015, or 42.7 per cent of the vote, beating the NDP’s Paul Dewar, who took 38.5 per cent.
The riding encompasses Ottawa’s downtown core and reaches Kitchissippi ward in the west and into Old Ottawa South and Hog’s Back in the south. It is bounded by the Ottawa River to the north, Sherbourne Road to the west, the Rideau River to the south and the Rideau Canal to the east.
CAROL CLEMENHAGEN — CONSERVATIVE PARTY OF CANADA
1. What is the most important local issue in your riding?
“The Liberal government, with passive, sloppy management, produced four successive deficits, this year’s topping $20 billion. The federal debt is more than $700 billion and growing.
“The most important local issue is funding for local priorities via federal/provincial/municipal collaboration. The competent management of a new Conservative government will secure that.”
2. If elected, what would be your top local priority, and how will you tackle it as an MP?
“The top local priority is infrastructure, with its cross-cutting significance for economic development, health care, climate action, transit, roads, housing, and recreation. A new Conservative government will fund all infrastructure projects approved to-date and move forward quickly on others with provincial and municipal partners.
“Residents too often now feel their concerns are discounted or deflected. The incumbent Liberal MP has been absent, silent or unhelpful on local issues like the Château Laurier addition, Tunney’s Pasture development, LeBreton Flats, the new Civic campus of the Ottawa Hospital, and the National Capital Commission’s capabilities.
I will seek residents’ input, meeting frequently with local community associations to engage Ottawa Centre’s broad views on issues.”
ANGELA KELLER-HERZOG — GREEN PARTY OF CANADA
1. What is the most important local issue in your riding?
“The climate crisis is both a local and a global issue. Cities are responsible for well over half of emissions. Already Ottawa is looking at tornadoes, floods, steeply rising food and insurance prices. To deny that climate change is a local issue is to fail on climate action.”
2. If elected, what would be your top local priority, and how will you tackle it as an MP?
“I would pursue climate solutions that benefit the many: Investments in active transportation and affordable public transit; energy-retrofitted and affordable housing; renewable local energy; generation of local good jobs in the transition to a low-carbon economy; regenerate the urban canopy; and ban single-use plastic.”
CATHERINE MCKENNA — LIBERAL PARTY OF CANADA
1. What is the most important local issue in your riding?
“I have been knocking on doors since 2014. Ottawa Centre residents have been telling me that they want an Ottawa Centre that is green, inclusive and prosperous. Building a strong local economy that is sustainable and includes everyone is important for the residents of Ottawa Centre.”
2. If elected, what would be your top local priority, and how will you tackle it as an MP?
“My top local priority is to continue working to make Ottawa the greenest capital in the world and grow our local economy. A big part of greening the capital is transportation. We need to make it easier to get around by clean public transit, foot and bicycle. LRT is here and we’ve invested in Stage II – that’s the biggest reduction in greenhouse gases in Ottawa’s history. If re-elected, I will champion repairing the Prince of Wales bridge for the use of pedestrians and cyclists.
“There is much more to do in other areas, particularly to address affordable housing. Since 2015, $216 million in federal funding has been invested in new affordable housing in Ottawa Centre, creating new homes for more than 1,600 people. If re-elected, I’ll work with government and housing sector partners to accelerate progress on addressing the need for more affordable housing.”
MERYLEE SEVILLA — PEOPLE’S PARTY OF CANADA
1. What is the most important local issue in your riding?
“I see the most important local issue being LeBreton Flats. The fact that there has been little work with this land to benefit Ottawa Centre and surrounding areas is discouraging. So much can be done that will truly benefit the community, environment and more.”
2. If elected, what would be your top local priority, and how will you tackle it as an MP?
“My first action would be to address LeBreton Flats. I would work with all levels of government and parties to see how we can properly turn this land into something that benefits all. Turning it into another Lansdowne does not help the residents who are struggling, yet simply leaving it untouched does not help the community. I believe there are ways that we can get projects moving and going – and this would be one of my top priorities that I would encourage and initiate.
“Along with tackling this, I would give back to Ottawa Centre organizations and make a personal monetary donation to help their program or services.
“As long as I am given the privilege of representing Ottawa Centre in Parliament, I would continue this tradition during my terms. There are families who are struggling under the government’s lack of funding. I want to give back.”
EMILIE TAMAN — NEW DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF CANADA
1. What is the most important local issue in your riding?
“The impacts of climate change are being felt more acutely every day. Extreme weather and annual flooding are becoming the norm right here in Ottawa; but there is also an increasing level of anxiety about the future we all face if we don’t have the courage to act.”
2. If elected, what would be your top local priority, and how will you tackle it as an MP?
“Tackling the housing crisis in Ottawa cannot be put off any longer. Too many people in our community are struggling to find and maintain an affordable place to call home, while corporate developers seem focused solely on building luxury condominiums. Many of these decisions are made at the municipal level, but there are many opportunities for federal-municipal partnerships to address this crisis. I would push for immediate relief in the form of rental subsidies for people who are spending more than 30 per cent of their income on housing. We will partner with non-profit housing providers and housing co-operatives to build and acquire new units in Ottawa.
“Planned developments on federal lands such as LeBreton Flats and Tunney’s Pasture should have clear requirements for new affordable units and community benefit agreements.
“Thriving communities require more than luxury high rises, and I will stand up to the vested interests that are holding our communities back.”