GEORGE CANYON — CONSERVATIVE PARTY
EDITOR'S NOTE: The News asked candidates running in Central Nova a series of questions pertaining to the riding. Included in this print edition from pages B4 to B7 are five of the 10 questions we asked, with candidates responses. For a full list of questions and answers, visit ngnews.ca. Q : What would your party do to improve rural economic development?
A: Small businesses drive prosperity in rural Nova Scotia and they need our support to be able to create more jobs in our small towns. A new Conservative government would take several measures to support our small businesses:
▪ Repeal Trudeau’s tax increases on small-business investments
▪ Exempt spouses from Trudeau’s tax increases on smallbusiness dividends
▪ Make it easier to navigate Canada’s tax system and the Canada Revenue Agency
▪ Reduce federal regulations by 25 per cent
▪ Implement a 2-for-1 rule for new regulations
▪ Assign a minister reporting directly to the prime minister to lead red tape reduction efforts
▪ Mandate ministers and regulators to support innovation, economic growth, and global competitiveness
▪ Champion Canada’s small businesses to the world Q : Access to high-speed internet has been brought up as a topic of concern in rural areas. What would your party do to address those concerns?
A: Conservatives understand
that reliable internet access is essential for rural and remote communities across the country. Unfortunately, for four years Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government has taken rural Canadians for granted and failed to make high-speed internet a priority. A Conservative government will make it a priority to ensure rural Canadians have access to highspeed internet. Q : What would your party do to improve mentalhealth care and resources for people in Central Nova?
A: Support for mental health is a very serious problem here in Central Nova. And it’s an issue that I do not take lightly. A new Conservative government would guarantee that the provinces would receive a minimum of a three per cent
increase annually for the Canada Health Transfer and the Canada Social Transfer.
We need to put an end to this suffering and ensure that people are not afraid to speak up and ask for help when they need it. A shift in culture is needed so that all levels of government are acting on this issue with a major focus on suicide prevention.
We must continue to build on the good work that has already been done to help with this crisis. In the last Parliament, my friend Todd Doherty from Cariboo-Prince George passed a bill that forced the Liberals to come up with a strategy to combat PTSD.
The previous Conservative government made significant investments to help address this issue. They created the Mental Health Commission of Canada with an investment of $240M and they allocated $5.2M to support research on treating depression with a focus on suicide prevention. As your next MP, I want to continue to build on this progress. I will fight for you to ensure we get our fair share so we can start addressing the mentalhealth crisis right here in Central Nova, together. Q : What would you do to assist the provincial government in its efforts to recruit and retain doctors?
A: I have worked as a mediator and negotiator over the past 29 years as a business owner. I have been a successful manager of change and have helped my company grow despite overwhelmed challenges. Building on those skills, I would work with the provincial government to ensure that they are attracting doctors to come work and live in Nova Scotia, especially in rural areas. As a federal MP under a new Conservative government, I would ensure that the provinces would be able to plan ahead by ensuring they have stable and predictable health and social program funding. Stable federal funding is important to ensure a quality public health-care system in every province. Q : What can be done to help keep young Nova Scotians working and living in Central Nova?
A: We need to be able to attract businesses to invest in Nova Scotia. After completely ignoring rural Canadians and their communities for three years, Justin Trudeau appointed a rural economic development minister in an election year in a desperate ploy to hold onto seats. With our plan to support rural communities, a Conservative government will take the following measures:
▪ Ensure that all regions receive their fair share of infrastructure funding with a budget specifically for them.
▪ Appoint a minister of rural affairs.
▪ Appoint regional economic development ministers actually from the regions.
▪ Ensure that all cabinet decisions have a rural perspective.
▪ Ensure that government programs consider the life conditions and unique experiences of Canadians in rural regions.
The Liberals have neglected rural communities for the past four years. With our plan, we want to put them back at the centre of our decision process.