A Mandate for Recovery: Policy Briefs from MLI Experts

Press Release

The questions that should be part of the election debate

With tonight’s debate likely to skip over a number of important policy issues facing Canadians, some MLI experts have proposed questions which they would ask our political leaders.

• Many Indigenous communities and a solid majority of Indigenous people favour carefully managed resource development that provides appropriate returns to Indigenous communities.  But they feel that current government policy is anti-development and does not give sufficient weight to their concerns and aspirations.  If you formed government, how would you ensure proper Indigenous engagement in resource development?
• Indigenous peoples have made it clear that autonomy is much preferred over dependency on government and continued paternalism.  How would your government support Indigenous self-government and greater respect for Indigenous rights?

Ken Coates is a Munk Senior Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute and the Director of MLI’s Indigenous Policy Program.

• Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have been hostages of China for over 1000 days. What strategy would you employ to get them home?
• In addition to the detention of Canadians, China is presenting a sustained, complex and evolving challenge to Canadian interests and that of our friends and allies around the world. How would you as leader meet this challenge?
• We know that the Taliban’s overthrow of the elected government of Afghanistan was only possible due to the dedicated support of Pakistan. Do you believe Pakistan should be sanctioned for its role in supporting this terrorist organization’s coup against the Afghan government and people?
• Defence procurement in Canada has been a mess for many years. One major issue is politicization, which sets back the process and undermines the ability of National Defence to actually get the equipment that our men and women in uniform need. Can you commit that a government led by you would de-politicize military procurement, and how would you ensure that this is done?

Jonathan Berkshire Miller is a Senior Fellow with the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA) and Director and Senior Fellow of the Indo-Pacific Program at MLI.

• As Prime Minister, how will you strike the right balance between protecting the principle of free speech and expression while addressing concerns about threats posed by the spread of hate and misinformation?
• Politicians often talk about how to redistribute wealth, but far too little attention is paid to how to grow wealth for all Canadians. What is your plan to increase GDP?
• The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated many weaknesses in Canada’s healthcare system, most especially a stunning lack of capacity compared to OECD countries. How would you fix the structural issues with our healthcare system?
• Canada has the lowest ratio of houses per capita in the G7, and every year this relationship is worsening. This is precipitating our housing crisis. How would you work with the provinces and municipalities to get supply built quickly?

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