A debate between candidates in the Trinity-Spadina provincial election riding got off to a rollicking start when smaller party nominees crashed the event, only to be invited on stage by Conservative hopeful Helena Guergis.
As a result, Greg Laxton of the Green Party and independent Nick Lin joined Guergis, Liberal Nellie Pedro and incumbent NDP MPP Rosario Marchese in debating the issues in front of an often boorish crowd at Hart House Tuesday night.
The debate, sponsored by The Varsity, SAC and the Graduate’s Student Union, featured a good deal of mudslinging and bad blood, mainly aimed at Tory candidate Guergis and the Ernie Eves government she backs.
In opening statements, Pedro thanked U of T for investing $4.5 billion into the city of Toronto, and lambasted the ruling Tories for what she called “government as a commodity.” Pedro also cited housing, transit, and water safety as main issues in her platform. “I want to make sure this city remains liveable,” she remarked.
Marchese also went after the Eves government in his address, focusing his attention solely on education. “Anything you can think of, they cut,” he said, calling the Tories’ claim that they increased funding for education “remarkable alchemy.” Marchese called for a reinvestment in the education system at all levels.
Guergis, who faced a hostile audience all night, tried to break the ice by joking “all my fans are here tonight,” evoking a barrage of hisses from pundits in the crowd. Guergis concentrated her attacks on Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty, questioning his plan of not hiking taxes and rolling back recent Tory tax cuts at the same time. “What is the difference? Tax hikes or reversing tax cuts?” Guergis also counted debt elimination as an important issue.
The Green Party’s Laxton took time in his address to simply introduce his party to the audience. This is the first provincial election in which the party is running a candidate in every riding. Laxton’s platform included reducing tuition to 1990 levels, restoring TTC funding from the province to the tune of 75 per cent, and preventative health care. “A lot of people live unhealthy lifestyles,” he noted.
Independent Nick Lin, who is part of the Marxist-Leninist party, told organizers to “pencil me in now” for any federal election debates in the future, as he intends to run then as well. Lin’s platform included free tuition through steady decreases, paid for by a levy on corporations, and a strong voice against the “annexationist pressures of the United States.” Lin also advocated that people be elected by “members of their collectives,” instead of the current system.
During question period, all five candidates supported same sex marriage rights, but the unanimity ended there.
On the issue of per capita funding for post-secondary education, Pedro called for expanded funding of OSAP, with a 50 per cent tuition reduction for the most needy students, in the bottom 25 per cent income bracket.
Marchese took the opportunity to once again roast the Tories on the issue, noting that Ontario, the richest province, is ninth in per capita funding nation-wide. He suggested a three per cent tax hike for those making more than $100,000 a year and more corporate taxation. Otherwise, Marchese noted, “all we’re left with is taxing the poor.”
Laxton went even further to the left, calling for a 17 per cent corporate tax rate and putting all school boards in public control.
On the issue of public transit discounts for students, Guergis offered to sit down with student groups, making the understatement of the night by saying “there seems to be a disconnect,” between the Eves government and students.
Marchese and Pedro both offered gasoline taxes to help transit funding.
The evening also had its bizarre moments as the candidates wore each other down.
On the issue of the Chinese government’s oppression of Falun Gong, all candidates were in favour of helping Falun Gong members no matter what except Lin, who stated that Canada should respect the U.N.’s original mandate of “non-interference in other countries.”
Student debt also proved to be a provoking topic, with Guergis and Pedro recalling their own days as struggling youngsters. “I took out a $60,000 loan to start a small business and I would not dream of asking the tax payers to help me out,” noted Guergis.
Pedro’s tale was a bit more unorthodox. “I held tupperware parties to pay my tuition,” she said, adding that before that she sold smoke detectors. “Does everybody know what tupperware is?” she asked the largely youthful audience.
In the closing statements, Marchese made the biggest strides, calling for an $8 minimum wage (up from $6.85) and $10 a day public day care, as well as public auto insurance, rent control and public hydro. Laxton called for an end to strategic voting, while Pedro made it clear that there was only one way to oust the Eves government, and that was through the Liberals and Dalton McGuinty. “This election is about one thing: change.”
