MUNICIPAL QUESTIONS
The Environment Committee of the Capital Unitarian Universalist Congregation in the James Bay area of Victoria has compiled a list of questions which includes suggestions from community organizations as a starting point to stimulate interest in the federal election and to encourage people to ask pointed questions of candidates. Please distribute this list or other questions that are of interest to you far and wide. It is the only way we can get politicians and media to discuss issues that are of concern to us. .
1. How do you propose to decrease green house gas emissions from transportation within the CRD? What is your schedule for this and how will you report your success to voters?
2. To what extent will you be guided in your decision-making when voting on council by triple bottom line analysis? (economic/social/environmental impacts?)
3. Bill 27 gives BC's cities a new degree of political autonomy and independence. Local governments now have a clear mandate to reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs) and advance green initiatives. In light of this, what policies or actions do you propose to reduce greenhouse gases and advance green initiatives?
4. What have you personally done to reduce your carbon footprint and energy consumption over the past year? What do you plan to do next year?
5. How can municipal governments encourage the development of a “conserving”, rather than “consuming” ethic in its citizens?
6. What steps will you take to foster local food systems which aim towards community self-reliance while at the same time reducing global warming impacts and supporting environmental biodiversity?
7. What can the municipality do to promote zero-carbon homes?
8. Which of the following suggestions from the community would you vote for?
a) increasing property taxes for buildings or housing left vacant for more than 6 months per year?
b) including supportive and non-market housing options in community plans?
c) preventing the demolition of housing if it can be proven that the building is suitable for low-income or affordable housing?
d) initiating requests to other levels of government to fund long term (3 year) residential addiction treatment centres?
e) keeping water and sewage services in the public domain?
f) creating incentives for renewable energy technologies?
g) increasing investments in cycling?
h) increasing investments in electric railways or Light Rail Transit?
i) developing a transit plan that is more tailor-made to fit micro zones than is currently in place? For example, can neighbourhood needs not be met with smaller (shuttle) buses that are dedicated to a given neighborhood where they can circulate more frequently?
j) adopting city-wide compost collection?
k) creating community commons ie. food gardens on school property?
l) planting fruits and vegetables on boulevards
m) expanding our household blue box recycling program?
n) reducing the wastage of paper and other office supplies in municipal departments?
o) investing in government buildings and infrastructure to bring them up to the highest environmental standards?
p) buying carbon offsets for all travel on government business?
q) eliminating unnecessary government travel?
r) amalgamating the municipalities in the CRD?
s) ban bottled water?
9. In your opinion, how can the municipal level of government work with senior levels of government to ensure a more equitable distribution of wealth in our community?
10. How do you see the municipality supporting people who are made vulnerable through poor physical health, emotional health, addictions, age and/or homelessness, etc.?
11. How can the municipality increase community-based early childhood development activities and programming in an effort to give more support to families and children?
12. How will you take personal responsibility for your position on council and give your constituents an accounting of your progress?
13. Given the midnight hour decision-making and lack of public presence, how would you improve the current public consultation process?
14. What do you propose to do to promote more transparency in government?
15. What organizations or services, if any, do you plan to privatize?
16. Would you institute a recorded vote at CRD meetings?
FEDERAL QUESTIONS
The Environment Committee of the Capital Unitarian Universalist Congregation in the James Bay area of Victoria has compiled a list of questions which includes suggestions from community organizations as a starting point to stimulate interest in the federal election and to encourage people to ask pointed questions of candidates. Please distribute this list or other questions that are of interest to you far and wide. It is the only way we can get politicians and media to discuss issues that are of concern to us. .
1. Do you agree with the International Panel on Climate Change that a 90% reduction in Greenhouse Gases is necessary by 2050? If so, how should we attain this goal?
2. What have you personally done to reduce your carbon footprint and energy consumption over the past year? What do you plan to do next year?
3. What should Canada do with regard to the following international agreements?
a) Kyoto Accord
b) NAFTA
c) Security and Prosperity Partnership
d) UN Agreement on Aboriginal Peoples
4. How should Canadian companies be regulated with regard to:
a) asbestos mining
b) uranium production
c) overseas operations that affect human rights and the environment
d) operations in countries with lower taxes and wages
e) influence peddling and corruption in poor countries
5. Food labels should include information on Genetically Modified Organisms and Greenhouse Gas emissions.
Do you support this? Does your party?
6. Since 2005, the federal government has been working against global consensus on banning Terminator seeds. It does not recognize the current moratorium supported by the UN Convention on Biodiversity.
Do you support the Canadian government position? Does your party?
7. What can the federal government do to support the development of local food systems that reduce reliance on oil for the transportation of food produced thousands of miles away?
8. To what extent do you agree with the following:
a) off-shore oil sources should not be harvested
b) fossil fuel subsidies should be eliminated
c) economic incentives should be provided to companies to develop innovative technologies to produce clean energy
d) utilities should be obligated to buy energy from small scale producers at an attractive price
e) oil tanker traffic on the West Coast and in other environmentally sensitive areas should be prohibited
9. What would you do about oil sands production?10. A triple bottom line analysis of the economic, social, and environmental impacts of every decision has been adopted in some Canadian jurisdictions.
How can this analysis be used at the federal level? What is your own opinion of this system?
11. In your opinion, what is the role of the federal government in:
a) supporting infrastructure development for increased cycling, public transit, electric railways, zero-carbon homes
b) funding for long term (3 year) addiction treatment centres
c) safe injection sites
d) equitable distribution of wealth in Canadian society
e) a national child care program
f) support for those people made vulnerable through gender, physical health, emotional health, addiction, age, homelessness
g) funding national cultural arts and heritage agencies such as the CBC
h) funding for social housing
i) curtailing aggressive lending tactics and interest gouging by financial institutions and credit card companies
j) exempting water from NAFTA
k) implementing policies that support small farmers for local food production?
12. How will you take personal responsibility for your elected position and give your constituents an accounting of your progress?
13. How would you improve the public consultation process and the operation of parliamentary committees?
14. What do you propose to do to promote more transparency in government?
15. What organizations or services, if any, do you plan to privatize?
16. What do you propose to do to reduce the concentration in media ownership?