Voters are scheduled to go to the polls on Oct. 21.Progressive ConservativesOn Sept. 23, the governing Progressive Conservatives announced plans to expand the roles of nurse practitioners, paramedics, and pharmacists to improve health-care capacity. The PCs said they will reduce the HST to 13 percent from its current 15 percent to tackle affordability. Leader Blaine Higgs has said that a re-elected PC government won’t approve more supervised drug-consumption sites but instead will focus on recovery for those with drug addiction. Related StoriesBC, NB Politicians Hit the Campaign Trail with Promises to Voters9/21/2024Video: NB Premier Higgs Discusses Parental Rights, Shifts in Right and Wrong, and Rise of Conservatives4/16/2024 They also said they’ve had six balanced budgets in a row, saving the province $90 million in debt interest this year alone.Liberal PartyThe New Brunswick Liberal Party, led by Susan Holt, made its own commitment to improving health care, saying it would overhaul the physician compensation model, create more training and residency seats, and streamline the process for foreign-trained health-care professionals to have their credentials recognized. The party said it will also establish 30 new community care clinics and offer retention payments for two years to nurse practitioners, registered nurses, and licensed practical nurses. The payments will be $10,000 for the first year and $5,000 the second year. Holt has said a Liberal government would introduce a 3 percent cap on the cost of rent beginning in 2025, which will be reviewed annually and adjusted based on the market. Other affordability measures the party said it will take include removing the 10 percent PST from power bills, getting rid of the provincial gas tax, and introducing a universal school food program. The party has also committed to building 30,000 new housing units by 2030 and temporarily removing the 10 percent PST on multi-unit housing construction. The Liberals said they would deliver balanced budgets without cutting services while continuing to pay down the provincial debt. Holt has also said that if elected, her party will start the second phase of municipal reform and find a new fiscal framework for municipalities.Green PartyThe province’s Green Party has also made election commitments regarding the cost of living and health care. When it comes to health care, the party says it will spend $380 million annually on the province’s primary health-care system. Party leader David Coon said the Greens will allocate $100 million per year to fund 70 collaborative family practice teams, create a downtown health centre in Moncton to serve vulnerable populations, invest $170 million a year to boost nurses’ salaries and benefits, and provide free tuition bursaries for medical and nursing school students. To tackle affordability issues, the Green Party said it will provide an average of $25 per month for households earning less than $70,000 in after-tax income to deal with higher electricity bills, cancel provincial subsidies to pulp mills, restructure the province’s primary electric utility NB Power and transition to renewable energy, and provide a guaranteed livable income program within four years. It will also immediately raise social assistance rates by 20 percent until the liveable income is in place. Other commitments include creating a comprehensive Heritage Plan for heritage buildings, covered bridges, and lighthouses and restoring court services to rural areas.
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