I had a full day of campaigning Duncan and the Cowichan Valley.
Along the way, news reached me of the NDP climate announcement. It underscores again why I want to run as a Green rather than with a more mainstream party.
I figured we would hear what the NDP carbon price would be, but it wasn't announced. The price will be created by market forces in an auction. The targets are good. Same as ours by 2050, 80% below 1990 levels. Those targets were set by the act introduced by Bruce Hyer that passed the House in May 2010 and was killed by the Senate. The act was re-introduced by the NDP and the targets were announced as the NDP plan some time ago. The commitment to end fossil fuel subsidies was also previously announced, as was a delegation to the Paris climate talks.
The standards in Canada should be higher for serious action on climate change. I welcome the NDP plan as a solid recognition of the scale of work we have to do, but I think we should have some more concrete specifics to look at before we go to the polls. That's why I see a place in Canada for the Green Party. We can call for stronger action in elections and in parliament.