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Elizabeth May, federal Green Party leader, rallies P.E.I. candidates

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Elizabeth May, federal Green Party leader, rallies P.E.I. candidates

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Federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May flew to P.E.I. for a few hours Friday to support local Green candidates in advance of Monday's election.

She spoke to a packed house at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Charlottetown.

May says she's confident the party will make an historic breakthrough, electing P.E.I. Leader Peter Bevan-Baker to the legislature.

"Breaking through in Prince Edward Island, in an area, a province where it's been very hard for a third party to make any strides at all, Green values really resonate for Prince Edward Islanders because they're concerned with local sustainability, local jobs," said May.

"That will send a message right across Canada, that Greens are electable across Canada in 2015," said May.

May, an environmentalist from B.C., was elected Canada's first Green MP in 2011, defeating an incumbent cabinet minister.

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'Historic breakthrough' for P.E.I. Greens, predicts Elizabeth May | CBC News

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Federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May flew to P.E.I. for a few hours Friday to support local Green candidates in advance of Monday's election. She spoke to a packed house at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Charlottetown. May says she's confident the party will make an historic breakthrough, electing P.E.I.

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Stephen Harper draws up election 2015 strategy on climate change

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Stephen Harper draws up election 2015 strategy on climate change

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Stephen Harper surprised a lot of people when he said Canada's soon-to-be-announced target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions beyond 2020 will not be the same as the U.S.

It was an abrupt end to the Conservatives' long-held position that the energy sector is a continental industry, so reducing climate changing emissions likewise requires a continental approach.

But to those who follow the political environment in Ottawa, falling out of lockstep with the Americans is a simple case of reality finally overtaking rhetoric.

That reality is the U.S. will meet its existing target of reducing emissions by 17 per cent below 2005 levels. Canada will not.

Cue the critics.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau accused Harper of hiding behind the Americans on climate change. And then the Americans moved and exposed him.

Trudeau told reporters this week that the prime minister's attitude is "we can't go and do something when the United States doesn't act, and when the U.S. acts, then it's 'Oh no, we can't act like the United States.'"

"This government has no desire to actually be responsible on the environment, no understanding that acting responsibly on the environment is actually the only way to build a strong economy in the 21st century."

Tit-for-tat

The Conservatives have always argued that Canada is too small and its resource sector too important to set targets that are out-of-whack with the Americans.

And that was true, to a point, even if that's a bit like the owner of a gas-guzzling Humvee arguing he shouldn't have to reduce his gas consumption because far more people drive Hondas.

Aligning Canada with the U.S. on environmental rules helped prevent companies in this country from being put at a competitive disadvantage.

It also became a bargaining chip with the Americans, as CBC News first reported, when Harper wrote U.S. President Barack Obama in late 2013 proposing "joint action in the oil and gas sector" if that's what it would take to get a presidential permit for the Keystone XL pipeline.

Nothing came out of the letter. And now that Obama has announced the U.S.will reduce emissions by as much as 28 per cent by 2025, Harper conceded last week that Canada's targets will not be exactly the same but will be "of similar levels of ambition to other major industrialized countries.''

Just who those countries are isn't clear either, as governments around the world roll out new GHG targets in advance of December's UN summit in Paris, where international negotiators will try to conclude another treaty on climate change.

Or, as skeptics would say, to go where Kyoto and Copenhagen fell short.

At the bottom of the pile

The Europeans are well on their way to substantially cutting emissions in advance of that summit. Now the Americans say they are, too.

"When we aligned on targets it seemed like smart politics at the time," says David McLaughlin, a former chief of staff in the Harper government and one-time head of the now defunct National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy.

"But it was pretty dumb economics because of the differences in the energy systems."

McLaughlin and others argue that it's both easier, and cheaper, for the U.S. to cut emissions beyond 2020 by simply replacing its abundant coal-powered electrical generation with natural gas or renewable energy sources.

Canada, on the other hand, produces far more clean energy primarily from hydro. But our national GHG emissions remain stubbornly high, primarily because of the energy-intensive development of Alberta's oilsands.

Regardless, "whatever the new commitment is, we are not on track to meet the old one,'' says Jeffrey Phillips, managing director of the consulting firm Dawson Strategic, who served as a senior policy adviser on energy issues in the federal department of natural resources until 2013.

Phillips says the only way to have any real reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is to drastically scale back oilsands production, and that's not going to happen.

"So whatever the prime minister announces about emission targets, it will put us at the bottom of the pile with Japan and, probably, Australia.''

Election year calculus

Tsunami-hobbled Japan recently announced it will reduce emissions by 25 per cent, but moved its starting point from 2005 levels to 2013 levels. Australia, like Canada, hasn't announced its new targets.

Conservative insiders say the U.S. targets sound great, but mean little, because Obama has no hope of getting them through the Republican-dominated Congress.

They see the Paris UN conference as a kind of reset to climate negotiations, and Harper will continue to argue Canada will do its part if the world's biggest emitters - China, Russia and the U.S. - step up with real targets.

China, for example, has agreed to cap its emissions by 2030, but not reduce them, and to increase the use of renewable energy to 20 per cent by 2030.

Harper, one suspects, is far less worried about how world leaders will respond when he announces Canada's climate change targets than he is about how it will play with Canadians.

He's portrayed any attempt to put a price on carbon - including his party's once-stated policy of curtailing emissions through what's called cap and trade - as a tax on everything.

So, in the run-up to Paris the calculation for the prime minister is, to put it bluntly, what political price will his Conservatives pay for not taking action on climate change in an election year, when his opponents argue they intend to do much more.

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Harper draws up election 2015 position on climate change: Chris Hall | CBC News

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By moving away from his long-held pledge to move with the U.S. on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the prime minister is making a calculated election-year gamble that economic fears will motivate more voters than fear of climate change, Chris Hall writes.

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Liberals pledge $3 billion for home care, prescription drugs, mental health

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Liberals pledge $3 billion for home care, prescription drugs, mental health

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OTTAWA-A Liberal government would invest an additional $3 billion in health care over four years to boost home care as well as take steps to ease the cost of prescription drugs and improve mental health care.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau conceded Wednesday that the targeted investments would be contingent on the approval of provinces and territories, which have jurisdiction over health care.

But he says the promised funding would respond to needs being felt across the country.

"Every single province is challenged with an aging population and the need for better home care," Trudeau said, adding that Canada must invest to get ready for the country's changing demographics.

Yet he accused Conservative Leader Stephen Harper of refusing to discuss health-care challenges with the provinces.

"Harper has simply refused to discuss the future of our health-care system. In fact, he has refused to sit down with the provinces to talk about it," Trudeau said during a campaign stop in Surrey, B.C.

"It's time we had a prime minister that understood that it's going to take leadership on health care to get our country back to where it needs to get to."

He said a Liberal government would launch discussions with the provinces with a focus on expanding access to home care. More than two million Canadians rely on home care, Trudeau said, and that number is expected to grow in the coming years.

On drugs, Trudeau said that a Liberal government would negotiate better prices for prescription medications and buy in bulk to help cut costs.

Speaking to reporters after his announcement, Trudeau said a Liberal government would act quickly on the party's commitment to legalize marijuana.

Trudeau said changes are needed because the current system allows criminals to easily profit from marijuana sales while not doing enough to shield children.

He repeated the Liberal commitment to legalize and regulate marijuana, "controlling it in a way that will protect our kids and remove criminal elements from it."

"We're going to get started on that right away. We will learn from the best practices of jurisdictions around the world who have moved forward," Trudeau said.

In a statement, Conservative candidate Julian Fantino, a former police chief in Toronto, said the Liberal plan "will make smoking marijuana a normal, everyday activity for Canadians."

NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair spent a second day in Iqaluit, where he said a New Democrat government would allow government scientists to speak out. And he promised to create a parliamentary office dedicated to providing scientific advice, according to a Canadian Press report.

The office of the parliamentary science officer would help restore respect for the country's scientists and put scientific evidence at the core of the fight against climate change, Mulcair said, according to CP.

"At a time when the prime minister should have been fighting climate change, Stephen Harper created a climate of fear within our scientific community," Mulcair said.

Harper was scheduled to appear at a Quebec event Wednesday.

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Liberals pledge $3 billion for home care, prescription drugs, mental health | The Star

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OTTAWA-A Liberal government would invest an additional $3 billion in health care over four years to boost home care as well as take steps to ease the cost of prescription drugs and improve mental health care. Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau conceded Wednesday that the targeted investments would be contingent on the approval of provinces and territories, which have jurisdiction over health care.

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Parties:

Conservative Party

New Democratic Party

Liberal Party

Green Part

Bloc Quebecois

Leaders:

Stephen Harper - Conservatives

Thomas Mulcair - NDP

Justin Trudeau - Liberals

Elizabeth May - Green

Gilles Duceppe - BQ

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Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau promises new affordable housing

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Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau promises new affordable housing

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Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is taking aim at Canada's overheated housing market with the promise of new funding for affordable housing, new tax incentives to boost the supply of rental units and a review of costly housing markets.

Trudeau used a campaign stop in downtown Toronto to sound the alarm that the rising costs of home ownership and rentals are undermining the quality of life of Canadians.

Liberal leader Justin Trudeau has promised help for Canadians hit by the rising cost of housing. (JONATHAN HAYWARD / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

"We know when families can't make rent. We know when too many families in the GTA can't find a home near work. Or when you can't afford to make simple repairs," Trudeau said.

"We know we need real change in affordable housing," he said during the event at the Alexandra Park Community Centre.

Under the strategy, the Liberals would:

provide $125 million a year in tax incentives to increase and renovate the stock of rental housing across Canada.

finance the construction of new, affordable rental housing for middle- and low-income Canadians.

take stock of federal lands and buildings to see what could be transformed into affordable housing.

update the Home Buyers' Plan to help more Canadians finance home purchases. This program allows Canadians to dip into their registered retirement savings.

Trudeau said a Liberal government would also review rising home prices in costly markets like Toronto and Vancouver to see if Ottawa has any role to help moderate the soaring costs.

But he offered no specifics on what role the federal government could play in influencing house prices.

Earlier in the campaign, Conservative Leader Stephen Harper also promised a review to examine whether foreign ownership was driving up home prices in cities like Vancouver making it unaffordable to middle-class buyers.

The New Democrats were quick to criticize Trudeau's announcement, charging that today's problems date back to the Liberal decision in the 1990s to download responsibility for social housing to the provinces as part of the deficit-cutting measures.

"Half measures . . . will not repair the damage done," the NDP said in a statement.

The NDP have pledged $2.7 billion over four years for affordable housing and the construction of new rental housing.

Some of the housing investments are part of the Liberals' previously announced plan to boost infrastructure spending by $60 billion over the next decade. One-third of that new funding would be earmarked for so-called social infrastructure, such as affordable housing.

A Liberal fact sheet said that one in four Canadians is paying more that they can afford for housing, above the recommended limit of 30 per cent of their income. That in turn means that paying for housing comes at the expense of other household priorities.

Trudeau made the announcement in the downtown riding of Spadina-Fort York, where Liberal candidate Adam Vaughan is facing off against NDP candidate Olivia Chow.

Trudeau was joined by Liberal candidates from across Toronto, including Bill Blair (Scarborough Southwest), Arnold Chan (Scarborough-Agincourt), Judy Sgro (Humber River-Black Creek) and Chrystia Freeland (University-Rosedale).

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Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau promises new affordable housing | The Star

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Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is taking aim at Canada's overheated housing market with the promise of new funding for affordable housing, new tax incentives to boost the supply of rental units and a review of costly housing markets.

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Justin Trudeau promises new health accord, improved home care

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Justin Trudeau promises new health accord, improved home care

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A Liberal government would negotiate a new health accord with the provinces and territories that includes long-term funding for improved home care for an aging population, party leader Justin Trudeau said Wednesday.

The country's previous $41-billion, 10-year Canada Health Accord expired in March 2014 and was not renewed by the Conservative government. The move prompted an outcry from groups representing health-care providers and patients, who argued that the health-care needs of some provinces would be deeply underfunded in the absence of an agreement.

As part of a renewed focus on improving the Canadian health-care system, Trudeau said, the Liberals would invest $3 billion over the next four years to provide additional and improved services for the nearly two million people currently receiving care at home.

A Grit government would also place significant emphasis on the construction of new affordable housing for seniors and seniors' facilities, including long-term care homes.

Money for those commitments would come from a separate $20 billion that Trudeau previously promised for what he is calling "social infrastructure."

"We are at a critical junction in the history of health care in Canada," said Trudeau during a campaign stop at a seniors' home in Surrey, B.C.

He was alluding to data released from Statistics Canada this week that showed there are now more Canadians over the age of 65 than there are under the age of 15.

"Stephen Harper and the Conservatives have had 10 years to plan for this fundamental shift that everyone saw coming, yet they have done nothing," he said.

"The odds are good that we all know one who has used the home-care system, maybe a family member or a close friend. And as our population ages, the number of Canadians in need of long-term care will only rise."

In addition to improved home care, the new health accord would prioritize boosting access to and reducing the costs of prescription drugs for the provinces and territories by buying them in bulk, as well as increasing access to improved mental health services, particularly for veterans and first responders living with post-traumatic stress disorder.

There would also be an effort to encourage "pan-Canadian collaboration" on innovative new health-care practices so that they can be adopted and implemented by providers across the country.

Trudeau also said he would sit down with leaders from each of the provinces and territories to discuss a possible increase to health transfers from the federal government to the provinces. When the Tories decided not to renegotiate the health accord that expired in 2014, they also decided to slow the rate of increases in federal health-care transfers, starting in 2017 - a change that would mean as much as $36 billion less for provincial coffers over the next 10 years.

"Harper has refused to discuss the future of our health-care system. In fact, he has refused to sit down with the provinces to talk about it," Trudeau said. "Instead, he has worked unilaterally to undermine it."

Conservatives defend record

But Health Minister Rona Ambrose, the Conservative candidate for Sturgeon River-Parkland in Alberta, issued a statement disputing Trudeau's claims. She said the government has "significantly increased" health transfers to the provinces under Harper's watch.

Since 2006, health transfers have climbed to $34 billion from $20 billion, and they will hit $40 billion by the end of the decade, Ambrose said.

"While health-care transfers to the provinces are now at record levels under our leadership, on their watch the Liberals cut health care by 30 per cent to balance their budget on the backs of the provinces."

NDP Leader Tom Mulcair has promised to use any budget surpluses his government might achieve to reverse the cut to the health transfers implemented by the Conservatives.

Murray Rankin, the party's candidate for Victoria, said Trudeau's announcement falls far short of the $4.8 billion needed to meet the critical six per cent health-care escalator.

"You can't restore federal leadership on health care, or have a meaningful conversation with the provinces, if cuts are the first thing on the table," he said in a news release.

The Canadian Nurses Association applauded key parts of the Liberal plan, including the shift from hospital to community-based care, and a commitment to collaborate and innovate with provinces and territories to meet regional needs.

"The federal government must work to unite Canada's health-care system across the regions so that all Canadians are guaranteed the same access to safe, high-quality health care," the association wrote in a statement. "The government can also foster better care by identifying local innovations that can be scaled up into national solutions."

While the Liberal plan was "scarce" on implementation details, the nurses association called it a "positive start."

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Liberals promise new health accord as aging country reaches 'critical junction' for care | CBC News

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A Liberal government would negotiate a new health accord with the provinces and territories that includes long-term funding for improved home care for an aging population, party leader Justin Trudeau said Wednesday. The country's previous $41-billion, 10-year Canada Health Accord expired in March 2014 and was not renewed by the Conservative government.

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Tom Mulcair in Iqaluit: NDP promises $100M to help 25 communities nix diesel

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Tom Mulcair in Iqaluit: NDP promises $100M to help 25 communities nix diesel

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NDP Leader Tom Mulcair pledged $100 million to help 25 northern and remote communities replace diesel generators with clean energy at a media conference in Iqaluit's Rotary Park.

He made the promise during his second day of a campaign stop in Iqaluit at a media conference focused on climate change.

"We're going to start with something obvious, we're in some of the most pristine ecosystems on Earth and we're burning so much diesel to make electricity," said Mulcair. "It's a paradox."

"We're going to work with the communities to come up with solutions like small hydro, wind, other green energy alternatives to start replacing the diesel," Mulcair added. "Diesel, it can always be there as a backup, but I want most of that electricity to come from clean, renewable sources."

Mulcair said the $100-million investment over four years will not only create local jobs for Inuit but also help improve the health and safety of northern communities.

Canada has about 300 off-grid communities that rely primarily on diesel generators.

Front line of climate change

Mulcair also directed shots at Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, criticizing his environmental record.

"Every step of the way, Stephen Harper has stood in the way of meaningful action to tackle climate change," Mulcair said. "Our record on tackling climate change is the worst of the wealthiest 27 countries in the world."

Mulcair pointed to the $1.1 billion in federal funding cuts for science and technology over Harper's last term, as well as the firing of more than 4,000 federal researchers and science personnel.

"Elders and scientists have told Stephen Harper to fight climate change. They told us that the Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world," he said.

If elected, Mulcair promised to listen to both elders and scientists on issues such as climate change.

"I respect the tremendous value of science, as well as traditional knowledge."

NDP promises to set up parliamentary science officer

Mulcair also promised to set up an office for a parliamentary science officer, saying that Harper's government "has hit the mute button on Canadian science."

The office would be able to make independent analysis on scientific issues.

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Tom Mulcair promises $100M to help 25 northern communities nix diesel generators | CBC News

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NDP Leader Tom Mulcair pledged $100 million to help 25 northern and remote communities replace diesel generators with clean energy at a media conference in Iqaluit's Rotary Park. He made the promise during his second day of a campaign stop in Iqaluit at a media conference focused on climate change.

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NDP to release Toronto-centric mini-platform

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NDP to release Toronto-centric mini-platform

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TORONO-New Democrats have released an election platform geared specifically to Toronto and its surrounding suburbs, a vote-rich region of the country that could determine who wins Oct. 19.

The platform, entitled "Building a Better Toronto," is based on the NDP's national platform, but highlights the policies the party believes will most resonate with Torontonians.

NDP Leader Tom Mulcair addresses supporters during a campaign stop in Montreal on Thursday. The NDP released an election platform geared specifically to Toronto and its suburbs. (Andrew Vaughan / CP)

"This great city, with the surrounding municipalities that make up the GTA (Greater Toronto Area), is the economic engine of our country," Toronto NDP incumbent Peggy Nash said in a news release Friday.

"We need a government in Ottawa that understands that."

The platform takes some of the promises from the NDP's national platform and breaks down what it would mean for Toronto.

For instance, it promises $12.9 billion over 20 years for Toronto transit infrastructure. And it promises to create 165,000 $15-a-day child care spaces in the city.

It also highlights promises to reverse health care cuts, create a cap-and-trade system to fight climate change, support arts and culture, make post-secondary education more accessible, reduce the backlog in immigration applications and repeal the Conservative government's controversial anti-terrorism law.

"Ours is an ambitious, progressive plan for a better future, building a city that is greener, fairer and a better place to live for all of us," Andrew Cash, another NDP incumbent in Toronto, says in the release.

The New Democrats know the Liberals are the biggest threat to their fortunes in Toronto, so they are ramping up efforts to convince its undecided voters they have the best plan for the city.

"We've got a huge part of the economy here and a huge population here and we have to get it right here," said Cash, who is running for re-election in the downtown riding of Davenport, said Thursday.

"If we get this right here, we can get this right everywhere," Cash said

"The success of our cities is vital to our national interest. There is no greater urban centre in this country than the City of Toronto and its surrounding municipalities. We need a government in Ottawa that understands that," NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair writes in a letter introducing the "Building a Better Toronto" document, which is coming out before the NDP releases its national platform.

"It's time to think big again, to be bold again, to reach higher," Mulcair writes.

The New Democrats won seven Toronto seats in 2011, but lost Trinity-Spadina to the Liberals in a 2014 byelection, and will need to hold and increase that result in the Oct. 19 election to have any chance at forming the government.

The NDP believes there are enough voters in the GTA who want the Conservative government out of office, but their challenge in the city and surrounding suburbs remains convincing voters that Mulcair, and not Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, is the one who can pull off a victory.

So, in selling its vision for Toronto, the NDP will also continue building its narrative that Mulcair, a former Quebec Liberal environment minister, has more of the experience needed to be prime minister than Trudeau, and that Trudeau voted in favour of the Anti-terrorism Act (Bill C-51).

The NDP also plans to keep pointing out that the Liberal fiscal plan released last weekend involves $6.5 billion in savings over four years, including $3 billion a year by fiscal 2019-20.

The NDP argues these savings would mean cuts to programming, but the Liberals have said they would find the money from items such as government advertising, boutique tax credits and using external consultants.

The NDP continues to have high hopes for Linda McQuaig in Toronto Centre and Jennifer Hollett in University-Rosedale, where Liberal Chrystia Freeland is running for re-election, and also think they could pick up Brampton East, where the NDP is running Harb Kahlon against Conservative Naval Bajaj and Liberal Raj Grewal.

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NDP crafts platform geared to country's most crucial battleground: Toronto | The Star

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TORONO-New Democrats have released an election platform geared specifically to Toronto and its surrounding suburbs, a vote-rich region of the country that could determine who wins Oct. 19. The platform, entitled "Building a Better Toronto," is based on the NDP's national platform, but highlights the policies the party believes will most resonate with Torontonians.

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Uploaded by Liberal Video on 2015-08-01.

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Stephen Harper promises 'tax lock' law to ban all increases

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Stephen Harper promises 'tax lock' law to ban all increases

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The Conservatives are promising a four-year "tax lock" law if re-elected on Oct. 19.

Speaking in Rivière-du-Loup, Que., Conservative Leader Stephen Harper revealed the plan to prohibit increases to federal income tax, sales tax and what he calls "discretionary payroll taxes," such as employment insurance premiums.

The value of such legislation would be symbolic, since it would carry no consequences if taxes were raised, though the Conservatives say the law would have to be repealed by a government that wants to raise taxes.

Harper said it's a way to enshrine the Conservative commitment not to raise taxes.

"Obviously, the other parties are promising something very different. They won't want to pass it, they won't pass it themselves; if they get the chance they would break it," he said.

Contrasting tax policy

The move is designed to contrast the Conservatives from their rivals. The NDP has proposed an increase to corporate taxes and the Liberals have called for an increase in taxes for the wealthiest Canadians to finance tax cuts to the middle class.

Speaking Friday in Quebec City, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair dismissed Harper's pledge without mentioning it by name.

"Today Stephen Harper came up with a new meaningless gimmick," he told supporters. "Let me tell you one thing: middle class families are tired of your gimmicks, Mr. Harper, and the NDP is ready to replace you on October 19."

Earlier in the day, Ontario Liberal candidate John McCallum called the promise "silly." He said balanced budget laws are common, but this was the first time he had heard of a tax-freeze policy.

"Overall I think it's a gimmick, and I don't think Canadians will buy it," he told CBC News.

The move is being welcomed by one tax watchdog group.

"It doesn't make raising taxes impossible, but it does makes it harder, and we welcome that," said Aaron Wudrick, federal director for the Canadian Taxpayers' Federation.

"Some will note that this legislation can simply be overturned by a future government, but from where we sit, if it raises the "pain" level for a politician who wants to do that, that's a good thing," Wudrick said.

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Harper promises 'tax lock' law to ban all increases | CBC News

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The Conservatives are promising a four-year "tax lock" law if re-elected on Oct. 19. Speaking in Rivière-du-Loup, Que., Conservative Leader Stephen Harper revealed the plan to prohibit increases to federal income tax, sales tax and what he calls "discretionary payroll taxes," such as employment insurance premiums. The value of such legislation would be symbolic, since it would carry no consequences if taxes were raised, though the Conservatives say the law would have to be repealed by a government that wants to raise taxes.

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Stephen Harper promises new tax credit for single, widowed seniors

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Stephen Harper promises new tax credit for single, widowed seniors

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A re-elected Conservative government would offer a new tax credit for single and widowed seniors, party leader Stephen Harper said Tuesday.

Harper announced the $2,000 tax credit - which would be phased in over four years beginning in January 2017 - during a campaign stop in Vancouver. He said it would provide tax relief - up to $300 a year - to 1.6 million seniors across the country who have pension incomes.

The new tax credit can be combined with the existing $2,000 pension income credit. According to the Tories, seniors who claim both tax credits could see a net benefit of up to $600 per year.

The new tax credit will cost about $23 million in its first year, with that number rising to $397 million once it is fully implemented. It can be claimed against all income other than Canada Pension Plan income or Old Age Security payments.

Harper said that seniors have worked and saved their whole lives and they know best how to make financial decisions about their retirement.

The Tory leader has been highly critical of the NDP and Liberal pledges to expand the Canada Pension Plan and employment insurance program, saying it will inevitably lead to what he calls payroll tax hikes and stifle the growth of small businesses.

"If the NDP or Liberals have their way, they will raise dramatically your payroll taxes in the name of retirement planning. Job-killing, payroll tax hikes," he told the audience of seniors. "Our Conservative approach is to give our seniors and our future seniors choices to let you decide how to best save for your retirement."

'Boutique' tax credits

The new tax credit for seniors is the latest in a series of so-called 'boutique' credits the Conservatives have rolled out ahead of the Oct. 19 vote. The other party leaders have taken shots at the Tories on the campaign trail, pointing out that some economists say boutique credits only serve to complicate the tax system.

When questioned by a reporter about a lack of broad-base tax reductions in the Conservative campaign platform so far, Harper said that the credits they have promised are "good things for Canadians."

"I don't think most Canadians are finding their tax forms harder to fill out. On the contrary, they are happy to take advantage of those things," he said, adding that he knows "the other guys don't like them."

For their part, the New Democrats and Liberals have been courting seniors in recent days as well. The NDP has committed to boosting spending on specialized health care initiatives, while the Liberals have promised to help the bottom line of low-income seniors.

After wrapping up in Vancouver, Harper is headed to his hometown of Calgary this evening to begin preparing for the Globe and Mail sponsored debate on the economy on Thursday night.

The Tory leader has pushed hard to make the economy the central theme of the election. During Tuesday's campaign stop, he held up Finance Department numbers showing a $1.9-billion surplus for 2014-15 instead of a predicted $2 billion shortfall as evidence his economic plan is working.

Harper said Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau seems to think the surplus in Canada provoked a worldwide fall in oil prices and that plunging the country back into deficit would be a good plan.

Trudeau has criticized the surplus, saying it was the product of under-spending on vulnerable Canadians such as veterans, seniors and aboriginals - an accusation that Harper said is "absurd."

Indeed, spending to all three groups increased last year over the previous year.

Mobile users, follow the live blog here.

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Tories target the senior vote with new tax credit, capitalize on surprise surplus | CBC News

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A re-elected Conservative government would offer a new tax credit for single and widowed seniors, party leader Stephen Harper said Tuesday. Harper announced the $2,000 tax credit - which would be phased in over four years beginning in January 2017 - during a campaign stop in Vancouver.

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NDP Vows not to cut jobs for federal public servants 

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NDP Vows not to cut jobs for federal public servants 

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The NDP will release its plans Tuesday to build a "stronger" federal bureaucracy, including the promise of no further spending reviews or job cuts for Canada's public servants.

Public service is shaping up as an election battleground in the National Capital Region, with the NDP and Liberals vying for the votes of federal workers.

Both parties promise to restore respect for public servants and rebuild a broken relationship with government but the NDP is expected to say that the big difference is that the Liberals plan to cut more jobs and the NDP won't.

"We said we would increase corporate taxes and stabilize the public service and you're not stabilizing the public service by letting people go, which is in their (Liberal) plan," said Paul Dewar, NDP candidate in Ottawa-Centre.

"What we really need to see from whatever government comes in is to stop this whiplash of hiring and firing people. We need stability in the public service."

Local NDP candidates will propose measures that touch on many of the thorny issues Liberal leader Justin Trudeau covered last week in an "open letter" to public servants.

The Liberals have also announced the costing of the party's campaign, with the billions in new spending and revenues they expect over the next four years if elected Oct. 19.

A Liberal government proposes to run deficits of $9.8 billion and $9.5 billion in its first two years, and $5.7 billion in 2018-19, before producing a slim $1-billion surplus in time for an election in 2019-20.

That includes $6.5 billion in new revenue though a tax expenditure and spending review. The measures include reviewing and cutting many programs introduced by the Conservatives, where the Liberals say they expect to find $3 billion in savings by 2020.

The Liberal party, however, said it expected to find those savings without any cuts to the public service and said an "attack on the public service" is not on the agenda.

But the NDP argues that the Liberals' spending review, coupled with a defence plan that calls for reducing the size of administration at National Defence to help fund procurement, implies further cuts in a public service that is still swallowing Conservative cuts.

The NDP is expected to restore collective bargaining rights for the public service, which will mean a "re-set" for the ongoing round of collective bargaining on sick leave. It will undo the changes to collective bargaining in Bill C-4, and provisions in Bill C-59 that allow the government to unilaterally impose new sick-leave benefits without negotiating them.

It has promised to repeal Conservative labour legislation that makes it easier to certify and decertify unions, and change the Income Tax Act to force more public disclosure of unions' finances.

The reforms for the public service include a Public Appointments Commission to ensure meritorious appointments to boards and agencies; stronger protection for whistleblowers against retaliation and a code of conduct for ministers and their political staff as recommended by the Gomery Commission to stop political meddling in the work of public servants.

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NDP vows not to cut jobs for federal public servants in Ottawa election battleground

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The NDP will release its plans Tuesday to build a "stronger" federal bureaucracy, including the promise of no further spending reviews or job cuts for Canada's public servants. Public service is shaping up as an election battleground in the National Capital Region, with the NDP and Liberals vying for the votes of federal workers.