The Green Party of Ontario is inextricably linked to the environmental movement, and for good reason, since their guiding ideology is ensuring that quality of life is preserved by preventing the degradation of our environment. Because of old political prejudices, you might be surprised to learn that, when approaching politics with a free market disposition, the best choice would be the Greens.
Traditionally, we think of Green parties as inherently left wing or socialist. However, in the pursuit of quality of life, the Green Party of Ontario has transcended traditional political stereotypes and draws from both sides of the political spectrum. Its policy statement reads not as an ideological manifesto, but as a pragmatic outline of strategies that will work to improve Ontario. Perhaps this has something to do with the business experience of the Green Party’s leader, Mike Schreiner. He ran his own food distribution business for 10 years and then started Local Foods Plus, a non-profit organization that worked to connect consumers and farmers who wanted sustainable diets. Indeed, Mr. Schreiner is the only leader of the major parties to have actually started a business and created jobs in the private sector. This positions him ideally for the task of creating an environment that will get Ontario working again.
The Greens understand something that no other party in this election seems to fully grasp: the fact that taxes are a disincentive. High taxes on business and savings lead to slow economic growth and high taxes on income lead to families finding it hard to pay their bills. Some of the party’s competitors want to see significant tax cuts to grow the economy — this is good. However, these tax cuts will leave the government in need of replacement revenue unless they want to slash social programs. The Greens, understanding that you tax what you want less of and do not tax what you want more of, would switch to taxing things like carbon emissions, waste and pollution to fill this gap. Their tax cuts would not just be handouts to major corporations; rather, the Greens would raise the exemption level of the Employer Health Tax by 100 percent, virtually eliminating the tax for most small businesses. Along with lowering the personal income tax, they would invest heavily in tax credits for green retrofits to houses, making changes that will save Ontarians money in the long run affordable in the short term. All these steps would work to unleash the economic potential of Ontario while ensuring that economic growth does not outpace quality of life.
The Greens also understand that in a globalized world, knowledge is economic power. As such they would update the education system to ensure students are in line to benefit from the growth sectors of the future. This would mean training more students in fields such as biomed, renewable energy, and sustainable architecture and city planning. To make university and college more affordable they would cap tuition rates at current levels and then index any future rise to the rate of inflation. This would ensure that, unlike some of their opponents’ plans, under a Green government Ontario students would not be burdened with personal or public debt after they graduate.
When it comes to energy policy, the Greens are second to none. They understand the importance of renewable energy to the future, not only of this province, but also of the world. The Greens realize that innovation is market driven and comes from entrepreneurs, not government bureaucrats. As such, they would reduce the red tape that prevents innovation in green energy technologies and reform the cumbersome bureaucracies that prevent energy distribution from being localized. By decentralizing energy production and distribution, they would allow local communities to invest in renewable energies that make the most sense for them, while also empowering individuals to reduce their carbon footprint.
Whether it is taxation, regulation, or positioning the next generation of Ontario workers to benefit from the growth sectors of the future, the Greens far surpass any of their opponents. They have a leader who is qualified with practical business experience and understands from the front lines what is required to create jobs. Their platform is filled with sensible, pragmatic solutions to the challenges facing Ontario. This October 6, if you care about lightening the load on Ontario families, increasing economic growth, and getting Ontario working again, the choice is clear — the choice is Green.
