A closer look at
electoral promises

As Canadians prepare to cast their votes, promises made reflect diverse priorities

By Irwin Rapoport

Edited April 28, 2025

As Canadians prepare to cast their votes, promises made reflect diverse priorities—from economic relief to environmental sustainability and cultural autonomy. By examining their implications, voters can better understand how each party’s platform aligns with their values and addresses national challenges. The election outcome will ultimately determine which vision shapes Canada’s future.

The election outcome will ultimately determine which vision shapes Canada’s future.

With the Canadian federal election scheduled for April 28, 2025, political parties are vying for public support with promises aimed at addressing pressing national issues. This article will analyze one key promise from each of the major parties—Liberal, Conservative, Bloc Québécois, New Democratic Party (NDP), and Green Party—to assess their potential impact and feasibility.

Liberal Party

Removing the GST on new homes for first-time homebuyers

The Liberals propose removing the GST on new home purchases under $1 million for first-time buyers. While this policy could make housing more affordable for young Canadians, critics may question its effectiveness in addressing broader housing market challenges, such as supply shortages and skyrocketing prices. Will this promise truly alleviate affordability issues, or does it risk benefiting only a narrow segment of the population?

Analysis

Should the GST on new home purchases be removed, the revenue losses could be offset by the construction of new homes and condo towers. However, this must be fully analyzed before any approval is given. The risk of increasing the costs of materials and straining the supply chain is very real. Keynesian economic policy has merit and is successful when carefully managed and monitored.

Prior to implementing any such policy, we need to determine an acceptable revenue loss and when a break-even point could be attained. If there was a slight shortfall, that may be made up via revenue from income and other taxes derived from activities associated with the building boom.

Will these new homes be affordable, and if the goal is to have affordable homes, how would that be enforced? And what would be considered an affordable price for a new home, which is based on the value of the land and the cost of construction? Furthermore, what is considered affordable varies across Canada, as do incomes and the cost of living in individual cities.

As noted, while good in theory, such a policy requires serious analysis before any policy is enacted. An additional factor is where these homes would be built. Will it be on decontaminated brown fields, repurposed industrial and commercial sites, farm land, wilderness areas, and green spaces? Will municipalities be permitted to set the size of lots to maximize the number of homes to be constructed, and could they insist upon townhouse-style projects to house more people?

‘That we have a growing population and a need for housing is a given. Will solid urban planning be the basis for a program to increase the housing stock, or will it be a free-for-all?’

Conservative Party

3 Strikes legislation imposing harsher penalties on individuals convicted of serious offences –
Eliminating the Carbon Tax

The Conservatives pledge to repeal the carbon tax on industries, arguing that it burdens businesses and consumers. While this promise appeals to economic conservatives and resource-dependent provinces, environmental groups warn that it undermines Canada’s climate goals. The analysis will explore whether this rollback could lead to short-term economic gains at the expense of long-term environmental sustainability.

Analysis

The Americans have already experimented with the ‘three strikes and you’re out’ policy, and it was a disaster. It led to a sharp increase in the prison population and the creation of the privately-operated prison industry in many states, and the problems associated with it. Some people have bad brain chemistry, and others were born with fetal-alcohol syndrome, which affects their judgment. We also have individuals who commit crimes to fuel their drug addictions. The key to the three-strike policy was that after the third conviction, it was a lifetime in jail.

It’s a given that we as a society do not want criminals to have carte blanche to re-offend, but embarking on a Canadian version of three strikes has serious ramifications. That the Conservatives always campaign with a ‘tough on crime’ plank is a given. They rely on fear. We are better than that.

Since Stephen Harper led the Conservatives, the party has championed climate change denial. They may pay lip service to the need to deal with climate change, but don’t be fooled. Polievre is fully prepared to permit energy, forestry, and mining projects that will rape the land, destroy ecosystems, and threaten biodiversity to the point of local and total extinctions.

Polievre is campaigning on establishing energy corridors to develop oil and gas and hydroelectricity projects with zero or minimal environmental assessments, and you can count on the pollution and environmental damage generated by them to never be cleaned up. He also wants to initiate a policy to approve ‘shovel-ready’ projects.

Justin Trudeau and his Liberal government did their fair share to wreck the environment by approving and building the Trans-Mountain tar sands oil pipeline, approving more off-shore drilling off of Newfoundland’s coast, doing nothing to stop British Columbia’s NDP government from its goal of wiping its remaining old-growth forests, approving mining projects left and right, and refusing to take action prevent the Aeroports de Montreal from developings its portion of the Technoparc westlands and wilderness area.

Justin Trudeau stated that he wants exploit every grain of the oil sands in Alberta and Saskatchewan to fund Canada’s transition to a green economy, conveniently forgetting that mining of the oil sand and transforming it into what is labeled ‘dirty oil’ generates tremendous levels of pollution, requires vast amounts of water, and creates hazardous tailing ponds that kill migrating birds which land in them. Furthermore, refining this oil generates serious pollution, and the burning of this oil generates greenhouse gases that impact every corner of the globe.

Donald Trump’s tariff campaign is having serious implications with renewed calls to build the Energy East pipeline project to move tar sands oil to eastern Canada for export to Europe, increase fracking and LNG development to supply natural gas to Europe, which would have an LNG port and facility in the Saguenay River to supply tankers. This would likely lead to the destruction of the isolated population of Beluga whales in the Gulf of St. Lawrence due to tankers plying the waters and the pollution from the port facilities. We could also see advocates for fracking getting their wish to start drilling wells in Quebec and drilling for oil in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

‘Let’s be clear. A free-for-all to exploit natural resources will be an environmental disaster.’

Bloc Québécois

Granting Quebec more control over immigration

The Bloc Québécois advocates granting Quebec greater authority to select temporary immigrants under the International Mobility Program. This promise aligns with Quebec’s push for autonomy and cultural preservation but raises questions about its compatibility with federal immigration policies. How might this shift affect national unity and labour market dynamics across Canada?

Analysis

Quebec nationalists have a long list of demands that they desire and innsist upon from Ottawa and they continually push, lobby, and whine that their demands are ignored and if partially given, are insufficient. They will never be satisfied until they have secured a de facto country within Canada with full funding, including generous transfer payments. Thus giving Quebec provincial governments, be they Liberal, Parti Quebecois or Coalition Avenir de Quebec, would be a disaster in so many ways.

Premier Francois Legault is demanding full control of immigration, as is the PQ. Legault wants to reduce the number of immigrants and refugees in order to strengthen Quebec’s authority and “protect the French language.” When the CAQ first took power, it cancelled nearly 18,000 active files of those seeking to immigrate to Quebec and of late, stated that it wants to reduce the number of immigrants via family reunification.

For decades Quebec has received special treatment and via its ‘knife to the throat’ strategy of using the fear of separation, to secure funding and authority that other provinces only dream of.

Legault has publicly stated that he prefers immigrants from France – ie white, Catholic, and French immigrants, and about a year ago, noted that Quebec’s population was just right. We know full well the nationalist game that Legault and the CAQ are playing. Pierre Polievre and the Conservatives and Jagmeet Singh and the NDP are keen to secure votes in Quebec by pledging to give Legault and the CAQ whatever they want. The question is whether Mark Carney and the Liberals will grow a spine and say “no.”

Quebec governments already fully utilize the immigration authority granted to the province and giving them more would be disastrous in the short and long-term.

‘Quebec governments already fully utilize the immigration authority granted to the province and giving them more would be disastrous in the short and long-term.’

New Democratic Party

Building Rent-Controlled homes on Federal Land

The NDP proposes using federal Crown land to construct over 100,000 rent-controlled homes within ten years. This ambitious plan aims to tackle housing affordability while promoting tenant protections. However, concerns about funding sources and provincial cooperation could hinder implementation. Is this promise realistic given Canada’s complex housing landscape?

Analysis

While laudable, there are problems with this proposal. It’s one thing to construct residential units on crown land in urban centers, but vast amounts of crown land outside of cities is unceded land on traditional territories claimed by so many First Nations. We have witnessed examples in Ontario where First Nations have challenged the construction of homes and apartment buildings for new subdivisions. This led to serious confrontations between First Nations activists and the Ontario Provincial Police. Before we develop such lands, it is crucial to recognize and deal with long-standing land claims. Nor can we forget that more than 96 percent of British Columbia consists of unceded lands – stolen lands.

Should the plan be implemented, we can safely surmise that these units will be located in apartment buildings. The initial investment will be expensive and require serious planning in terms of architecture, selection of building materials, avoiding the creation of “projects-style” communities, and figuring out methods to maximize construction – something similar to the manufacture of Liberty Ships during WWII to replace ships sunk by Nazi U-boats. Through careful research, shipyards could build such ships in 24 days.

Provincial and municipal cooperation would be essential in terms of zoning regulations, designing projects that complement existing communities, and funding. New municipal infrastructure would be required, such as water mains, sewage pipes. and roads, as well as electrical infrastructure.

Once built, who would own the new buildings and who would be managing and maintaining them, and what would the annual maintenance costs be? The City of Vienna could be a model in terms of municipalities constructing and managing affordable housing for its residents.

‘It’s one thing to have a vision, it’s another to plan and implement a program to maximize the funds and resources dedicated to it.’

The Green Party

Retrofiting 3.3 million homes across Canada to improve energy efficiency.

This policy supports climate action by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and lowering energy costs for homeowners. Yet questions remain about the scale of investment required and potential logistical challenges in execution.

Analysis

The federal government and many provincial governments have initiated similar programs in the last 20 years, and this has not only made homes, apartment buildings, and condo towers more energy efficient, but have created thousands of jobs and reduced the number of under-the-table projects, which have brought in much needed federal and provincial revenues.

In regard to the scope and cost, these factors can be studied and guidelines established. This is not rocket science. We all benefit when structures are more energy efficient, and the technologies to bring this about are improving daily, be it building materials, solar panels, thermal energy systems, and other renewable energy sources that can be harnessed.

Conclusion

Whether focused on making housing more accessible, rethinking environmental policy, protecting cultural identity, or addressing affordability, each proposal carries both potential benefits and significant challenges. Ultimately, the direction Canada takes will depend not just on campaign pledges but on the ability of future leaders to balance ambition with practicality, collaboration with accountability, and short-term gains with long-term sustainability. By weighing these factors carefully, voters will have the opportunity to shape a future that reflects their values and meets the evolving needs of the country.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of WestmountMag.ca or its publishers.

Feature image: Praveen Kumar Nandagiri – Unsplash