District 18: Rustico - Emerald's candidates' promises on Affordability

Cell & Internet services

Green

Expand high-speed Internet to all of rural PEI

"Complete the expansion of high-speed internet in rural PEI, and make sure our broadband infrastructure keeps up with future demand and technological changes." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

We don't have any Liberal policies on Cell & Internet services.

PC

Expand high-speed Internet access to remaining households by 2024

"Expand high-speed internet access to the remaining 4% of households by 2024" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

NDP

Recognise cell and Internet services as essential
Complete an Island-wide fibre high-speed network
Subsidise Internet packages for all families with students in school
Eliminate cell phone dead zones

Childcare

Green

Increase the number of childcare spaces
Negotiate with the federal government for further funding to reduce childcare costs
Add flexible childcare services in or near healthcare facilities

"Create childcare services within or near healthcare facilities that are flexible to meet the needs of shift workers." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-13
Immediately increase wages for early childhood educators to at least a living wage
Make it easier for individuals to open in-home childcare centres

"Encourage more individuals to open in-home childcare centres by making the process easier and financially viable." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23
Create a capital fund for building new childhood centres, and maintaining existing ones

"Create a capital fund to build new childcare centres, expand existing ones, and keep centres from closing." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23

Liberal

Enhance childcare subsidies for low-income Islanders

"Enhance childcare subsidies for low-income Islanders to support their efforts in participating in the labour market" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22
Add more spaces to existing facilities
Build new facilities in rural areas
Increase funding for staff to support children who require one-on-one assistance

"Increasing funding for inclusion support staff to support children that require one-to-one assistance" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22
Create a programme to fund school-age centres

"Creating a funding program for school-age centres to support the requirements of parents requiring extended hours of coverage for their children" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22
Support training and professional development opportunities fro childcare staff
Work with the childcare sector to develop a recruitment and retention programme

"Working with the sector to develop a sustained, long-term recruitment and retention program in order to ensure the required workforce to support expanded spaces" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22
Increase grants for renovating and expanding existing childcare centres

"Increasing renovation grants to expand existing centres/spaces that reflect actual building costs" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

PC

Create a $20M fund to provide grants to Early Learning Centres to expand
Build childcare centres in all new public buildings, until wait lists are eliminated
Designate six more early learning centres this year
Create a pension plan for Early Childhood Educators this year
Start a national recruitment campaign for Early Childhood Educators to live and work in PEI
Give grants to private developers who build childcare centres into multi-unit buildings in under-served regions
Pilot a universal afterschool programme for K-6

"Work with existing providers and engage with our school system to pilot a universal afterschool program for grades K to 6 and develop an action plan to expand the program to all areas of the province" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24
Pilot extended-hour childcare facilities close to hospitals

"Pilot extended-hour childcare facilities that are in close proximity to our hospitals" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

NDP

Implement free, universal public childcare

"Go above and beyond the current federal child care initiative to establish permanent, free and universal public child care – creating jobs and helping Islanders get back to work." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Develop province-wide before- and after-school childcare programmes
Increase wages of childcare workers

Dental care and optometry

We don't have any Green policies on Dental care and optometry.

We don't have any Liberal policies on Dental care and optometry.

PC

Provide insurance for health, dental, and medications for part-time, seasonal, contract, and gig workers

"Create a Portable Health Benefits Program to provide health, dental, and medication insurance for workers who may not be employed full-time, year-round, or those facing barriers to insurance coverage like seasonal workers, contract employees, and gig economy workers." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-10
Expand the Eye See...Eye Learn Program to ages 0-12

"Expand the Eye See...Eye Learn Program to provide children with two free eye exams and two free pairs of eyeglasses between birth and age 12" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

NDP

Work with the federal government to create a universal dental care programme

Food prices

Green

Give more money to Island food banks
Expand the Seniors' Food Program pilot to all of PEI, and make it permanent

"The Seniors Food Program delivers reheatable meals, but this program is limited to the Georgetown and Cardigan areas. A Green government would expand this program to include all of Prince Edward Island." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-17

We don't have any Liberal policies on Food prices.

PC

Consider a universal breakfast program for schools

"Explore the creation of a universal breakfast program with the English and French language school boards" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24
Fund organisations that run community fridges

"Provide core funding to organizations that run community fridges and fund an umbrella organization to work with community leaders across the province" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

NDP

Provide a $30/week coupon for farmers' market of community-supported food purchases

"Introduce a market nutrition coupon, providing a minimum of $30/week toward farmers’ market or community-supported food purchases." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Call for an investigation into rising food prices

"Follow the federal NDP’s lead and call for an investigation into out-of-control food costs on Prince Edward Island." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Remove the $5.50 cost for the PEI lunch programme, and provide a free breakfast and lunch programme for all students

"Remove the suggested $5.50 cost of the PEI lunch program and implement a free breakfast and lunch program for all Island students." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

Fuel and transportation costs

Green

Support eliminating fees on the Confederation Bridge and Wood Islands ferry
Reduce or eliminate fees for transportation services like Pat and the Elephant and Transportation West

We don't have any Liberal policies on Fuel and transportation costs.

PC

Work with the federal government to reduce bridge and ferry tolls to $20

NDP

Provide an exemption for the gas tax

"Bring in a gasoline tax exemption, easing approximately 8.5 cents per litre for Island drivers." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09

Minimum wage

Green

Immediately increase the minimum wage to $15.20
Increase the minimum wage by at least $1/year until it reaches a living wage
Start a basic income pilot project, and advocate for financial support from the federal government for a full UBI programme

"A living wage was estimated a few years ago at around $19-$20 an hour. With recent inflation this is likely now around $21-$22 per hour.

Raising the minimum wage by $1 per year would be much more rapid than increases in recent years. It would likely be well ahead of inflation, thus closing the gap more every year. We would aim to have minimum wage catch up to the living wage in about 5 years.

One of their main challenges of minimum wage increases for businesses is that they have little time to adjust and plan for their labour costs. Currently, government gives businesses approximately 6 months notice for minimum wage increases. Having a clear plan on what minimum wage increases will be coming over the next several years will provide much more predictability for businesses and allow them to plan ahead for how they will meet their labour costs." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-10

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Liberal

Review the annual minimum wage process

"Committing to reviewing the annual minimum wage process and developing a long-term strategy to create a transparent, fair, and predictable process that takes private wage trends into account" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

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We don't have any PC policies on Minimum wage.

NDP

Increase the minimum wage to $17/hour, and tie it to inflation
Create a plan for providing a guaranteed livable basic income

Poverty

Green

Start a basic income pilot project, and advocate for financial support from the federal government for a full UBI programme
Create a poverty elimination strategy

"Prepare a comprehensive poverty elimination strategy in consultation with the community and Islanders affected by poverty, pursuant to the Poverty Elimination Strategy Act." — 2023 Election Platform, 2023-03-23
Increase the Assured Income Allowance for Islanders with disabilities
Increase social assistance rates and index them to inflation
Raise income thresholds for accessing government programmes

Liberal

Increase social assistance supports to counter inflation
Increase rental subsidies for low-income Islanders
Increase allowable income under social assistance programmes

We don't have any PC policies on Poverty.

NDP

Raise incomes for Islanders receiving social assistance

"Raise social assistance rates to realistic levels that boost households above the Market Basket poverty line." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Create a plan for providing a guaranteed livable basic income
Extend inflationary support payments through 2025

"Extend inflationary support payments to individuals and families through 2025." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Broaden eligibility and double annual support through the PEI Home Heating Program until 2025

Prescription drugs & pharmacare

Green

Review the provincial pharmacare programme

"Review the provincial pharmacare program to make sure Islanders are not overburdened by drug costs and dispensing fees." — peigreens.ca, 2023-03-10
Increase funding on pharmacare by $18M

"A Green government would make an immediate investment of $18 million into provincial pharmacare programs to improve access and eliminate unnecessary fees. This would help close the gap between the Prince Edward Island and Canadian average per capita expenditures on pharmacare. Included in this commitment is free access to contraceptive care." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-21

Liberal

Expedite access to publicly-funded medications

"Expedite access to publicly funded medications so Islanders get access to newly approved medications" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22

PC

Provide insurance for health, dental, and medications for part-time, seasonal, contract, and gig workers

"Create a Portable Health Benefits Program to provide health, dental, and medication insurance for workers who may not be employed full-time, year-round, or those facing barriers to insurance coverage like seasonal workers, contract employees, and gig economy workers." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-10
Reduce the co-pay for the generic drug programme to $5
Add more drugs to the formulary covered by the government

"Continue to work with the federal government towards a PharmaCare program by adding more drugs to the formulary covered by the government" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24

NDP

Work with the federal government to create a universal pharmacare programme

Public transit

Green

Add more urban and rural public transit routes
Increase the operating grant to the Capital Area public transit system
Renew transit subsidies to keep bus fares fares affordable
Increase the frequency of buses

Liberal

Increase investment in public transit

PC

Invest in an Island-wide transit system
Keep fares at $2/trip, and monthly passes at $10-$20

"Lead the country in low-cost public transit by subsidizing the transit system to $2 per ride or $10 - $20 for a monthly pass" — With You. For You., 2023-03-24
Add more routes

"Continue to make investments in the Island-wide transit system, keeping fares at $2 per trip and adding more routes, to make it more affordable to get to and from work." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-17

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NDP

Develop a regional and urban public transit network
Offer free public transit for people with incomes under $40K
Create a province-wide, publicly-owned transit system, run on renewable energy

Student loans

Green

Set the PEI Student Loan zero-payment threshold to $40K gross income, indexed to inflation, and higher for families

"Set the zero-payment threshold for PEI Student Loans to $40,000 gross income, indexed to inflation and with upward adjustments for family size. This would bring PEI in line with every other Atlantic province and make sure Island graduates do not have to repay loans if their annual income is below $40,000." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-09
Cover student loan repayments for 2023-24

"Cover student loan repayments for the 2023-24 year to support recent graduates in this period of high inflation and economic uncertainty." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-09
Increase debt reduction grants for students who stay in PEI after graduation

"Review debt forgiveness programs to support more students who choose to work on PEI after graduation.

○ Increase debt reduction grants." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-09
Consider providing debt reduction to students from elsewhere who come to work in PEI

"Explore the possibility of expanding debt reduction programs to include students from other provinces and international students as incentive to stay and work on PEI." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-09

We don't have any Liberal policies on Student loans.

We don't have any PC policies on Student loans.

NDP

Convert government loans to grants

"Giving young people a chance by converting government loans to grants, so students aren’t graduating with massive debts." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Retroactively remove interest on provincial student loans

Tax measures and rebates

Green

Raise the low-income tax reduction threshold to $25K over 4 years

"Raise the Low-Income Tax Reduction threshold to $25,000, helping 11,000 additional Islanders." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-10
Create additional tax brackets for high incomes
Index tax brackets to inflation
Provide a refundable tax credit, averaging $250/person, for lower- and middle-income workers, in addition to the Canada Workers Benefit

"To provide targeted tax relief to lower- and middle-income Island workers earning income between $30,000 and $50,000, we would create a refundable tax credit at a cost of $8 million per year in Y1, with increased investment in subsequent years. The tax credit would be designed with a sliding scale so lower-income workers would receive a larger benefit. The average benefit would be approximately $250." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-10

"PEI’s tax brackets are antiquated, having not been updated since 2008. A Green Government would make changes to PEI’s tax system to make it fairer for Islanders and in particular would:

● Raise the low-income tax reduction threshold from $20,000 to $25,000 over 4 years,

● Create additional tax brackets to better tax high incomes; and

● Index tax brackets to inflation to protect against bracket creep and keep more money in the pockets of Islanders." — peigreens.ca backgrounder, 2023-03-10

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Liberal

Re-evaluate the provincial income tax model

"Re-evaluating the provincial income tax model to better align with our Atlantic counterparts to ensure we are competitive in attracting labour to the Island" — Healthcare First: An Action Plan for Islanders, 2023-03-22
Review the excise tax on cannabis

"Undertake a review of excise tax on cannabis to determine how the level of taxation impacts the growth and development of manufacturing on PEI."

PC

Roll back property taxes to 2020 rates
Provide a $500 tax credit for volunteers with registered charities and non-profits
Increase the Seniors Tax Credit to $6,510, and raise the threshold to $36K
Increase the Basic Personal Exemption Amount to $15K over the next 4 years
Reevaluate the provincial income tax brackets

"In addition to raising the basic personal exemption amount to $15,000 over four years, we will also re-evaluate the provincial income tax bracket model to be more competitive and leave more money in the pockets of Islanders, especially low-income Islanders." — peipc.ca, 2023-03-17

NDP

Give back more of the provincial portion of the quarterly HST rebate to eligible Islanders
Lobby for a federal wealth tax

"Create a new bracket for PEI’s highest income earners, while lobbying for a federal wealth tax and closing of tax loopholes for the rich." — NDP Platform 2023, 2023-03-09
Create a new tax bracket for the highest income earners