With less than a week to go until election day, all seven federal election candidates in Cariboo-Prince George shared a stage at the University of Northern BC’s winter garden for a forum on Tuesday, April 22.
Lheidli T’enneh Elder Mike Bozoki welcomed those in attendance to the First Nation’s traditional territory with a brief history of his people’s history in this area and UNBC president Geoff Payne thanked those involved for participating in the democratic process to start the night.
Associate Prof. Fiona MacDonald and Prince George Chamber of Commerce executive director Neil Godbout moderated.
Candidates were told each would be allowed to speak on six core issues — defence and sovereignty, trade, Indigenous affairs, housing, affordability and health — after introducing themselves.
Liberal candidate Clinton Emslie said he's a Quesnel resident looking to be a community champion, one who represents a change in the way this riding is represented in Ottawa.
Green Party candidate Jodie Capling wished attendees a happy Earth Day and said she was running to give local voters the chance to vote for a candidate who represents their values.
People’s Party candidate Rudy Sans said his party represents a different option at the political buffet, representing true conservative values and not playing into identity politics.
NDP candidate Angie Bonazzo said she’s a longtime Northern Health employee who is fighting in this election to help preserve Canada’s health-care system.
Independent candidate Kenneth B. Thomson said he’s running after seeing a degradation of quality of living over the past four years and wants to tackle local issues that aren’t being addressed by political parties.
Christian Heritage Party candidate Jake Wiens said his party looks deeper than its counterparts at moral issues at Canada’s core like abortion and medical assistance in death.
Conservative incumbent Todd Doherty said when he first ran for election 10 years ago, he promised to be a hard-working member of Parliament and believes he’s accomplished that, including his work on establishing a national mental health hotline.
Moving on to the first question, MacDonald asked Emslie what role they’d like to play in helping the federal government identify goods solely made in Canada from those partially assembled or manufactured elsewhere.
Emslie said the solution is already partially in play, with a proliferation of made in Canada signs on goods since the beginning of the Canada-U.S. trade war. He added that Canadians can choose to strengthen its own economy by purchasing local goods.
Capling was asked what Canada can do to diversify its exports.
She said a big issue Canada faces, especially in resource-based economies like the one in Cariboo-Prince George, is that the Green Party wants to see more value-added processing done before Canadian goods are exported elsewhere. That could include building new trading relationships.
What role should the next prime minister play in getting Canadian provinces and territories to buy locally-made oil and gas products rather than import them, Sans was asked.
He said the PPC wants to appoint a minister of interior trade and build pipelines to promote domestic production.
“There’s absolutely nothing we stand against to develop oil and gas in this country,” Sans said.
Bonazzo was asked what the next prime minister should do to tackle duties on softwood lumber.
She said Canada must find other markets to sell its products to, even if the U.S. has a need for Canadian lumber to rebuild California after wildfires, for example.
Thomson was asked what the next prime minister should do to eliminate internal trade barriers. He said those barriers were put in place at the country’s founding as some regions had more robust economies than others.
At this point in time, he said, the time to keep those barriers in place has passed and producers in various provinces should be allowed to export their products to the entire country.
Should workers and owners lose their business or jobs because of the elimination of interprovincial trade barriers, Wiens was asked what government supports should be offered to them.
He said he’s not an expert and that the government cannot solve the entire problem by itself, though tax incentives should be offered to promote the development of secondary and tertiary markets.
“The more government gets involved, the more messed up things often get,” Wiens said.
For the last question on trade, Doherty was asked how he would convince dairy producers in this region that removing protections for their industry is an important part of reducing interprovincial trade barriers.
He said these solutions need to be worked out in consultation with industry and that by removing these barriers, it would unlock billions in internal trade and reduce reliance on the United States.
Before moving onto the next question, candidates were given a minute to opine further on trade in any way they’d like.
Doherty took the microphone again to chastise the governing Liberals for not doing enough to tackle softwood lumber duties in its near-decade in power.
Wiens said the situation with the U.S. is temporary and the Trump administration is just trying to fix its own house, which we should respect. He said he wished Canada was as serious at getting its own affairs in order.
Thomson said the United States will likely go bankrupt in the next decade if it doesn’t change course.
Bonazzo said softwood tariffs go back multiple decades.
Sans said the PPC has no interest in an escalating tariff war, saying that’s a fight Canada can’t win. He added that Canada needs to come to the table to establish a free trade agreement with the U.S. and Mexico, criticizing the current government for not wanting to.
Canada, the U.S. and Mexico signed a revised free trade agreement during the first Trump Administration.
Capling said this situation allows Canada the chance to establish a greener economy and a greener future.
Emslie said the relationship with the U.S. is currently broken, though that doesn’t mean it can’t be repaired in future. In the meantime, he said Canada needs to create a new economic safety net by developing trade relationships with other nations. He pointed out that his party has promised to return collected tariffs to the affected sectors.
Moving onto defence and sovereignty, Capling was asked how seriously Canada should take Trump’s threats to make this country the 51st U.S. state.
She said this situation is a wake-up call to look at what we need from its military. With rising foreign interference, cyber warfare and climate instability, Capling said the Greens would make the Canadian Forces self-sufficient for the modern climate, including stable funding to do its job properly and reducing Canada’s reliance on U.S. defence contractors.
Sans was asked what non-U.S. country Canada should partner with to upgrade its defence. He said he thought Canada should maintain its current defence relationships, saying the U.S. is no longer willing to fund globalist efforts like the “massive bill NATO is imposing on them.”
How would you respond if Alberta or Quebec seriously pursue their independence from Canada, Bonazzo was asked.
She said she would engage in a thoughtful dialogue with concerned citizens who have those desires for independence.
Thomson was asked what he would do to promote more young Canadians entering the military or police positions. He said Canada’s military needs to reevaluate itself, making sure its mission to protect the country’s interests resonate with young people.
On policing, he said underlying problems with the country’s crime rates need to be addressed so that policing is seen as a safe career.
What kind of military assistance should Canada provide to Ukraine, Wiens was asked.
“I would probably say none,” Wiens said. He alleged that Canada had sent “gender consultants” to Ukraine and wondered how that could be helpful.
He criticized the Liberals’ recent investigations into foreign interference, saying it’s like the fox guarding the henhouse and saying there are rumours that party is benefitting most from the interference.
Doherty was asked how Canada can secure itself when its military is so intertwined with the United States’.
Whatever equipment the Canadian Forces purchase, he said, it needs to be consistent with what our neighbours acquire. He said the military is 10,000 recruits short and is at an all-time low for morale.
He said soldiers are being forced to buy their own socks.
Rounding off the questions, Emslie was asked what Canada’s stance on China should be.
Emslie said Canada has a history of peacekeeping and in terms of dealing with dictatorships, we do not negotiate or participate with them. He said there’s a lot of untrue propaganda circulating, none of which can be proven.
In the final remarks on defence, Emslie said Canada’s military is not in shambles but instead just needs to be improved and made less reliant on the United States.
“Canada funds the military, we can do more for sure,” he said. “Canada has committed to meeting its NATO targets by 2030.” This has to be done gradually to make sure the economy is built up at the same time, he said.
Capling said that as the military gets better equipped, the Green Party would like to change how it is deployed within our own borders. As we face a climate crisis, she said, there may be a role for the military to be used to respond to emergencies.
Sans said he’s a deputy sheriff in the city and that the same facility he was trained at was used to train the Chinese army. On Ukraine, he said Canada has spent $500 for each Canadian that could have been spent domestically.
Bonazzo said Arctic sovereignty needs to be mentioned and that her party wants to partner with Indigenous groups to fortify the north.
Thomson said the term dictatorship is used too loosely when it comes to China, which has been a civilization that has existed for five millenia. He said it’s similar to Russia.
He said the West promotes fearmongering, because it been taken over by foreign interests.
Doherty said China is an unreliable actor that has infiltrated our elections and established police stations within Canada. He added that from his experience on a national defence committee, he knows that our military is in tatters.
He agreed with Capling’s comments on using our military to respond to emergencies and that our military can do more.
Wiens said Canada’s military should more closely integrate with the American military, saying this country would be foolish to go it alone.
Switching to immigration, Sans was asked what additional support the federal government should provide to recruit and retain international workers.
Sans said he is an immigrant of 35 years and isn’t against immigration, but current immigration levels are unsustainable. Those current levels are creating problems with infrastructure, affordability and more, he said, which is why the PPC is looking for a total moratorium on immigration for at least a year.
He said foreign workers are taking away entry-level jobs from domestic youth, like students, he said.
Asked what Canada should do to support international students, Bonazzo said they are overcharged and are frequently pigeonholed into programs they don’t want to be in.
She said this needs to be addressed so that they want to stay once they have graduated, so we can get them to be contributing members of society.
Thomson was asked what the federal government can do to better integrate immigrants into Canadian society. He said the country only has a certain capacity to assimilate immigrants, which has been exceeded in recent years.
Immigration should only be done at the pace at which assimilation can be supported, he said, adding that he knows of some immigrants who have been brought in whose values is contrary to our judicial system’s values. Thomson is a Quesnel-based lawyer.
How many immigrants should Canada admit each year and why, Wiens was charged with asked.
He talked about how Canadian youth need to better supported, saying they’re being indoctrinated and squeezed out of job opportunities by immigrants.
Doherty was asked what a Conservative government would do to assist UNBC and CNC address problems faced by international students
He said he’s already met with those institutions’ presidents and is already looking into how to help with those problems, referencing the stories of local post-secondary students facing challenges making ends meet.
However, he cautioned that the immigration floodgates can’t be opened and said issues with crime can’t be laid at the feet of immigrants.
What should the federal government do to encourage immigration to this riding?
Emslie said he’s a registered immigration consultant and said his hair is going white because of the problems in the system. He said he would work with the next immigration minister to make sure the system is more economically robust.
One of the problems, he said, is that there aren’t programs aligned with rural economies.
The last question on immigration was to Capling, who was asked whether she would support or oppose programs that look to boost the domestic birthrate to reduce dependence on immigration.
First off, she said, her party believes that immigration is one of Canada’s great strengths. In an era where some communities are facing labour and skill shortages, she said immigration can help revitalize them though those newcomers need to be provided with the resources they need.
On the matter of promoting a greater birthrate, she said she honestly didn’t know though she wasn’t sure it was the government’s place to weigh in on the matter.
For the last word on immigration, Sans said our population is being replaced with immigrants. Coming from France, he said immigration was destroying that country’s society.
He said he has nothing against people who want a better life, but it’s not sustainable. If life was more affordable, maybe people would have more kids.
Bonazzo agreed with Sans that affordability is preventing some families from having kids, saying that’s why some people instead adopt dogs.
Thomson said he wanted to clarify that he wasn’t blaming immigrants for crime, he just wanted to air concerns about immigration outpacing the capacity for assimilation.
Wiens said abortion is the reason that Canada does not have a sufficient birthrate to sustain a replacement population. He said parts of Europe are being turned into ghettos where police are not allowed to go.
Doherty said people don’t want the government trying to influence family planning, agreeing that affordability is a problem. He said government needs to make life more affordable, so they can make the decision on whether to have kids.
Emslie said that in the next 10 to 15 years, around 60 per cent of our workforce could retire. He said Canada’s immigration system is an example around the world and that while it needs improvement, it should not be discarded.
Capling also agreed on the affordability issue but said hope is another issue. She said that families like hers are wondering whether they have a future as things like climate change become more pressing issues.
The Indigenous affairs section started with Bonazzo, who was asked whether she supported the implementation of a law that would classify denial of the harms of the residential school system as a hate crime.
She said she would support such a law, saying that the impacts of residential schools on Indigenous peoples cannot be denied as it continues to perpetuated prejudice.
What control should First Nations have over resource projects in their territories? Thomson said Canadians have the right to determine what happens on their lands and First Nations should be treated no differently.
He criticized Canada for acting as if it was a stern parent dealing with Indigenous groups as if they were recalcitrant children as well as how the federal government has managed Indigenous lands.
Wiens was asked what economic reconciliation looks like for him and his party. He said the end goal must be so that all Canadians are treated equally and not hyphenates with differing rights than others.
Doherty was asked how he and his party would work with Indigenous leaders to transfer control of child welfare to Indigenous groups. He said that reconciliation has become a buzzword and that frequently Indigenous groups are pitted against each other.
To get away from that, he said collaboration is needed with Indigenous groups and that Canada needs to make sure that no more children in care are lost, killed or injured.
How urgent is the construction of a bridge across the Fraser River to join the two Lheidli T’enneh reserves north of Prince George? Emslie said he stands as a defender of reconciliation and building a bridge would allow those residents more economic and cultural freedoms.
“If they are separated by nature, we need to find a way to join them by man-made structures,” he said.
Capling was asked what economic reconciliation looks like for her and the Green Party. She said their policies support Indigenous self-determination and treaty rights.
We must continue to ask questions and listen for the responses, she said. While she might have ideas of her own, it’s more important to ask Indigenous peoples what they need, she said.
Sans was asked what reconciliation in the justice system looks like for him and the PPC.
He brought up the Gladue report, which is a pre-sentencing report that courts can request to assess whether offenders’ Indigenous background was a factor in their involvement with the justice system. A crime is a crime no matter the person’s background, Sans said.
People aren’t all dealt the same cards when they’re born, he said, but justice is justice.
In the last comments on Indigenous affairs, Doherty brought the Lheidli T’enneh bridge back up, saying he has tried to advance the project in his tenure and has briefed Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre on the file.
If Indigenous people are treated as a separate group, it will prevent them from assimilating into Canadian society, Wiens said.
Thomson said there’s a difference between law and justice. He said inter-generational hurt is a factor that many people coming before the court don’t have to deal with.
Going forward, he said infrastructure, housing and clean water need to be improved on Indigenous reserves.
One in four Indigenous women or girls suffer violence or are murdered in the country, Bonazzo said, which is why the NDP has committed to creating an alert system for that kind of violence.
She said there is a genocide against Indigenous women in Canada.
Going back to the idea of considering residential school denialism a hate crime, Sans said criminalizing any kind of thought is a slippery slope though he acknowledged the system as a dark chapter in Canada’s history.
Emslie said the Liberal government has done a lot for First Nations over the last decade but there’s more work to be done. If elected, he said he would listen to local Indigenous groups and be a voice for them in the House of Commons to help repair the sins of the past.
The final round of questions was on affordability and housing.
Thomson was asked what he would do to have the federal government promote house construction. He criticized the Liberal government of the ‘90s for stepping back from building public housing and said it’s not the right approach to incentivize developers to fill housing needs.
He said that shipping containers can be converted into small homes for a small price, if the country doesn’t look to benefit from a profit margin. He said many homes built by the government after the Second World War are still standing.
Wiens said he and his party would release lands from agricultural reserves for development to help encourage municipalities to stimulate housing development.
Asked about what his party would do to reduce record levels of consumer debt, Doherty said high inflation in Canada is because the country has been spending money like it grows on trees.
His leader, Doherty said, would look to balance each dollar of new spending with a dollar of spending cuts. He said a new report by the Privy Council of Canada said that in 15 years, there could be people so poor they illegally hunt for food to put on their plate.
Emslie said Liberal Leader Mark Carney has released the biggest housing plan since the Second World War when asked what his party would do to support workers struggling to make ends meet.
He said these would be affordable homes, but there’s more Canada can still do to address affordability.
Capling was asked what she and her party would do to reduce the poverty rate. She said the Green Party would reduce the basic personal exemption for income tax to $40,000 and introduce an excess windfall tax on large corporations, banks and grocery chains.
Going on, she said her party would look to triple the country’s social housing stock. Affordable housing is defined by the Greens as costing no more than 30 per cent of household income, she said.
Asked what he and his party would do to reduce homelessness, Sans said federal spending, foreign aid, foreign military support, subsidies and other wasteful spending needs to be curtailed to reduce the national debt and lower inflation as a result.
Sans said Canada has money available in natural resources, but we must get red tape out of the way preventing them from being developed. He brought up the opioid crisis, saying it puts his life in danger every day at work as well as those of other first responders.
For the last question of the forum, Bonazzo was asked what she and the NDP would do to lower the number of working poor people in Canada.
She said wages need to be increased by hiking the minimum wage and establishing a standard for it. She said that some people have to work more than full-time hours to make ends meet, which needs to be stopped.
With just seven minutes left, MacDonald said there wasn’t time to get to the rest of the questions but offered each candidate a final minute to conclude their thoughts for the evening.
Thomson said the biggest problem in Canada is that private interests have become the dominant concern in Parliament rather than the public interest, which has led to issues with things like health care, which hasn’t recruited
Wiens said he would need more than his allotted minute to issue his final statement. He said politicians in this country have refused to seriously deal with abortion and traditional marriage. He tried to continue after his minute was up but was cut off by Godbout.
Bonazzo said Canada is facing serious problems, but none so large that they can’t be overcome. She said the NDP would help provide a balanced voice in Parliament that would help preserve social programs.
Sans ended by saying the national debt is unsustainable and that his party wants to reduce spending and restore the gold standard.
Capling wrapped things up by saying that Canada should forgive student debt and make education free, which drew the only outright cheers of the evening.
Emslie said he’s a businessman going through many of the same problems that people in the room are, but that his party has a strong leader who will help build the strongest economy in the G7.
The final speaker of the night was Doherty, who thanked the other candidates and audience members for coming out and being respectful, which he said doesn’t happen all the time at events like these.
He said he would continue to champion mental health issues, that Canada needs to address the opioid crisis and his party will put Canada first.
The Winter Garden is set for another forum on Wednesday, April 23, with the five candidates from Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies set to take the stage from 7 to 9 p.m.
The local Rogers TV channel is set to air both forums on Thursday.
Election day is Monday, April 28.
