This election, ask politicians how they will improve your quality of life
During election season, politicians traditionally tell us about the excellent work they've done in growing the economy, or about all the programs they've created.
Governing parties focus on telling us about the dollars they've spent, rather than the outcomes of those programs.
A common talking point for the Trudeau government has been that over a million jobs were added to the Canadian economy on their watch. They have also frequently pointed out that Canada had the fastest gross domestic product growth among the G7 nations. They frequently refer to using the Canada Child Benefit program to lift 287,000 families above the poverty level.
The last point is important — because it's a growing practice for governments to focus on quality of life indicators, in addition to growing the national economy.
In 2018, Scotland, New Zealand and Iceland came together to form the Wellbeing Economy Governments group. These countries have decided that economic growth should not be pursued at any cost and that they are going to be accountable to their citizens for quality of life outcomes.
This is an approach to governing that addresses the major issues of the day such as climate change, globalization, and inequality.
Here in Canada, it's election time, and we should absolutely pose hard questions to our political leaders on what they are doing — or what they will do — to make day-to-day life better for Canadian citizens.
Measuring outcomes vs inputs
Asking candidates about what social and environmental outcomes they intend to produce is a good way to move the political discourse beyond economic growth. After all, GDP is largely an indicator of how well high-income people and businesses are doing.
National GDP numbers also tell us very little about provincial or regional outcomes.
A recent Statistics Canada study found that population in Newfoundland and Labrador could drop by as much as 90,000 people by 2043. We have an aging population, low birth rates and stagnant immigration.
We must ask our candidates what they're going to do to improve those indicators.
Did you know that the Conference Board of Canada has found that Newfoundland and Labrador has the lowest health outcomes of all provinces, and that we rank below the United States and many other Western countries?
The federal government puts massive amounts of money into health care at the provincial level — but has no mechanisms to hold provinces accountable for how that money is spent — or the outcomes those dollars achieve.
When the federal government speaks of post-secondary education, rarely do they speak of the impact of the increasing costs of living on student debt or how this will impact the economy of the future.
Tuition fees are only a fraction of the cost of an education.
Housing costs in St. John's have doubled in the last 20 years, and wages have not. New graduates have said that the changes to Canada Student Loans have been a tiny Band-Aid on a gushing wound.
While the Trudeau government has spent almost four years developing a carbon tax program, have our environmental outcomes improved during their four years in office? What outcomes do the other parties say their climate change policies will achieve?
Most of the initiatives undertaken will benefit us over the long term and will be in peril if the ruling party changes. It is reasonable to ask candidates how they're going to ensure climate change continues to be addressed if government changes. This is clearly an issue that requires putting partisanship aside.
It's election time, and we should absolutely pose hard questions to our political leaders on what they are doing — or what they will do — to make day-to-day life better for Canadian citizens.
The Trudeau government has committed to reducing methane emissions by 40 to 45 per cent below 2012 levels by 2025. There is a good chance government will change before we reach that date.
They also introduced the Just Transition Task Force on coal, designed to reach 90 per cent non-emitting power by 2030. The federal government has also put in place a rebate for electrical vehicles, designed to reach 100 per cent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2040.
These are also long-term measures that will have to pass through the hands of multiple governments.
From a Newfoundland and Labrador perspective, they have protected only 13 per cent of oceans and 2.5 per cent of our land, notably up from 0.9 per cent and 1.05 per cent, respectively.
Is this enough or do we deserve more? What are the other parties going to do in these areas?
Are incidents of violence against women increasing or declining?
The best indicators tell us it has increased slightly during the last four years. The Trudeau government has implemented a Gender Based Violence Knowledge Centre that will hopefully enable us to better address prevention. Will the other parties commit to maintaining it?
The national gender pay gap has closed marginally during the last four years. Canadian women still make only 87 cents for every dollar that men make, on a national basis, as opposed to the 86 cents they made four years ago.
Newfoundland and Labrador has the highest gender pay gap of any province in the country with women making 69 cents for every dollar a man makes. When can we expect to see improvements in this area? The Trudeau government has offered pay equity, pay transparency, paternity leave, and daycare spaces. What are the other parties offering?
It is hardly a secret that the growing service economy has created more minimum wage positions. Job growth numbers do not tell us how many jobs people need to earn enough money to live on or to make it through university.
The major parties have spent much of this election, and indeed the last four years, focused on 'gotcha politics.'
Many Canadians need desperately to see the minimum wage raised. Many want to see much higher taxes on high income earners and corporations. They want to see solutions for taxing the wealth that now goes offshore untaxed.
When politicians talk about job numbers, we need to ask them:
- How many pay a living wage?
- How many of those jobs are full time?
- How many provide health and dental benefits to their employees?
- Are those jobs being created in economically disadvantaged regions of the country?
- How long is the average work day?
- What is our level of job satisfaction as a nation and a region?
- Do our citizens feel they are doing meaningful work?
- Is there diversity in work places?
- Are all demographic groups sharing equally in the job growth?
- How much productivity is lost as a result of stress leave?
- Are the rates of personal bankruptcy going up or down?
- Is the level of personal debt going up or down?
Real solutions for the problems of our time
In short, Canadians want to see structural change that will address the major challenges of our time. Many also feel that the major political parties are not up to addressing these challenges in any substantive way.
The major parties have spent much of this election, and indeed the last four years, focused on "gotcha" politics.
The problem with that is when we are debating who is perfect enough to be prime minister, we are not talking about the policy changes that need to be made.
We have reached a critical turning point in our history.
We owe it to the next generation to manage our shifting global environment in an effective and responsible manner. We owe it to them to put partisanship aside.
We also owe it to them to ask the hard questions of our leaders right now.
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