We asked George Barron, NDP candidate, West Nova:
1. Why are you running?
I am running for Member of Parliament because I am unwilling to surrender the Canada we inherited from Lester Pearson and Tommy Douglas to the neo-cons, the neo-liberals and the corporate elite who are destroying our once peaceful and just country.
2. Three of the four of you we have seen on the ballot - and two in office - before: what do you offer this time around?
I offer a real alternative to career politicians and their out-dated policies that have not served Canadian citizens well.
I hope I have enough smarts, enough passion for social justice and enough respect for the natural world to challenge the status quo. I humbly recognize the monumental work it will take to turn our fortunes around, but I believe it can be done.
3. What are the top-three challenges facing West Nova?
I truly believe the top three challenges are to provide energy efficient housing for all, provide healthy local food for all and to teach our children well.
Life is simple, after all.
4. Talk about transportation links in the riding: no trains, poor highways, the Digby and Yarmouth ferry links…. Where is the plan?
I think the question, itself, reveals there is no over-all plan. I do think the provincial NDP plan of having a scheduled program to resurface existing roads as cheaply as possible is a good start. I believe, except where there are outstanding safety issues, we have to stop expansion of the road system. Any capital investment must be in public transport which, because of past decisions, has to be bus, not rail.
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Transportation, especially in sparsely-populated areas like West Nova, will be one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century with the end of cheap energy.
5. Is your federal leader an asset in the West Nova campaign?
Of course, Jack Layton is an asset in the West Nova campaign.
A few years ago, both Stephen Harper and Michael Ignatief went on public record saying Canada should join the illegal war in Iraq. That fact alone makes them unfit for the prime minister's office, in my mind. When Stephen Harper says, "support our troops,” he means "don't question my foreign policy.” When Jack Layton says, "support our troops,” he's more likely talking about veteran's benefits and pensions.
Jack Layton is the only leader who thinks like the people he is leading.
The Kings County Advertiser, Register and The Annapolis Spectator will be hosting a candidates’ forum in West Nova April 18 at West Kings High School. Doors open at 6:30.
