Name: Ches Crosbie
Age: 65
Party affiliation (provincial and federal): Provincial PC
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 709-753-6043
Website: crosbie2019.ca
Q. Do you believe there is more that can be done to combat climate change in Newfoundland and Labrador? Explain.
A. Check out our policy Blue Book online for more on where our party stands. Protecting our environment, reducing harmful emissions and addressing climate change matters to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. The billions we have invested to shift from oil-fueled electricity to hydroelectricity is our province’s greatest contribution to the reduction of emissions here at home and throughout the Atlantic provinces. The Trudeau Liberals should have fully credited our Churchill River hydro investments to Newfoundland and Labrador and spared us their regressive carbon tax, which the Ball Liberals limply accepted even though it’s a punitive, regressive tax grab that does nothing to reduce emissions. We can make real progress by investing in more renewable-energy alternatives, energy-efficient buildings, electric vehicle promotion, plastic reduction, recycling, better use of the NL Green Fund and more.
Q. What is your primary legislative priority should you be elected as premier?
A. My policy pillars are jobs and hope, affordable living and honest leadership. My cornerstone legislation within my first 200 days will be an honesty in politics law, because trust has been badly eroded, and we need it restored so we can build partnerships to fix what’s wrong in our economy. My first affordable living tax bills within the first 200 days will repeal the Ball Liberal tax on all forms of insurance and put an early end to the dreaded Ball Liberal levy. Further legislation, budgeting and policy initiatives will drive job creation, because that’s what we need to turn the corner toward growth.
Q. With the death rate exceeding the birth rate, outmigration remaining prominent and an aging population, what is your top priority to address demographic challenges in Newfoundland and Labrador?
A. We will make a strong case to Ottawa for a federal-provincial joint renewal strategy that addresses our population loss and age profile, and will let us put our resources to work for our own prosperity, unfettered by federal laws like Bill C-69 that will stall our offshore just at the time when it can bring billions in revenue and thousands of jobs to our communities. Jobs will keep young people here, bring expat families home and fuel the immigration we need to grow our working-age population, and that growth will bring the revenues we need to finance health care for seniors, sustainable public services and major investments in core infrastructure, all of which also sustain jobs. Our affordable child care policy, tax credits for graduates and repeal of the Liberal head tax levy and 15 per cent insurance tax will help to retain and attract young families by making life affordable.
Q. Are changes needed to the existing tax system in Newfoundland and Labrador? If so, what specifically should change?
A. The Ball Liberals in 2016 imposed more than 300 taxes and fees, most of which remain in place, sucking cash out of the economy where it ought to be fueling consumer spending, business hiring, investment and expansion. The Liberals’ own independent tax review said the levy “was poor tax policy … regressive and closer to a head tax than a progressive income tax” and “government should consider ending the (levy) before the end of 2019” – which is exactly what I will do. I will also cut the insurance tax – not just on auto, but also on home insurance – because recirculating that money will stimulate growth and make living here more affordable. As our economy grows, we will continue to examine our tax policies to make them the most competitive in the country. Complementing this will be our new child-care policy, which will free up cash for middle- and low-income families the same way a tax cut would. These tax changes are desperately needed to increase people’s disposable income in order to get our economy back on the path to growth.
Q. Do you have any conflicts of interest that would need to be addressed upon re-entering the House of Assembly?
A. I have handed off responsibility for litigation against Crown entities to successor law firms. These cases involve vulnerable plaintiffs, and in order to promote access to justice, were taken on a contingent fee basis. I will not be involved in any government discussion or decision-making respecting this litigation. Any contingent fee interest will be placed in a blind trust.
