The 44th general federal election is well underway with only days left until the Sept. 20 vote. There are four candidates running in the St. Albert-Edmonton riding: Conservative incumbent Michael Cooper, People's Party of Canada Candidates Brigitte Cecelia, Liberal candidate Greg Springate, and New Democratic Party candidate Kathleen Mpulubusi. Each candidate was given a series of questions and up to 100 words to answer each one.
Do you think we should raise, lower, or keep taxes the same and why?
Conservative incumbent Michael Cooper:
Conservatives are committed to putting more money in the pockets of everyday Canadians. Under the Liberals, life has become more expensive. Conservatives are committed to making life more affordable by repealing Justin Trudeau’s job-killing carbon tax, which will raise transportation and heating costs for individuals and businesses to sky-high levels; supporting working families and children by converting the Child Care Expense Deduction into a refundable tax credit covering 75 per cent of the cost of child care for families who earn under $150,000; and implementing a month-long GST holiday this fall to help families, as well as hard-hit retail stores, recover.
Liberal candidate Greg Springate:
Our Liberal government cut taxes for the middle class and raised them on the top one per cent. We invested in our communities, roads, bridges, and transit. We put more money in the pockets of nine out of 10 parents through the Canada Child Benefit and lifted nearly half a million children out of poverty. We reduced taxes for small businesses, and we will lower the small business tax rate to nine per cent. As an accountant and tax expert, I believe we need a process to look at all taxes to determine what balance is in the best long-term interests of everyone.
New Democratic Party candidate Kathleen Mpulubusi:
The wealth of Canada's billionaires has increased by $78 billion since March 2020 while 5.5 million Canadian workers lost their jobs or had more than half of their hours cut at the pandemic's peak. We need to make our tax system fairer and invest in services people need by ensuring the ultra-rich and corporations pay their fair share; getting rid of tax loopholes for the ultra-rich and big corporations; and getting tough on tax evasion and tax avoidance.
People's Party of Canada candidate Brigitte Cecelia:
We are lowering the taxes once we stabilize out of our burgeoning debt. We insist on leaving more money in the pockets of Albertans. We will abolish inter-provincial trade