Higgs defends PC record in northern New Brunswick

Continuing his tour of campaign stops across northern New Brunswick, Progressive Conservative Leader Blaine Higgs stopped for a photo opin Bathurst.

Along with local candidate Kim Chamberlain, who is also the mayor of Bathurst, Higgs stood in front of the oldSmurfit-Stone mill.

The abandoned industrial site has been an eyesore in the town for 20 years, and the PC government issued a call fordemolition so it can be cleaned up.

Demolition began this week.

When asked about a claim from Liberal Leader Susan Holt that Higgs has "ignored" the francophone north, Higgs pointed to the Smurfit-Stone site as an example tothe contrary.

"I think the reality is of what we're doing here in the northern regions, the projects we've invested in," Higgs said.

"I think we've done this right across the province, right across the North I just think that the reality is much different than the perception."

He reiterated his position that the north could have more representation in government by electing PC MLAs.

Higgs and his candidates also continued to raise Policy 713 as an election issue.

A statement from PC candidate Bill Hogan, education minister in the Higgs government, accused Susan Holt of having a "hidden agenda" for not including her stance on Policy 713 in her election platform.

Higgs and Hogan changed Policy 713 to make it mandatory to get parental consent before teachers can use a child's new chosen pronouns if they're under 16, even verbally, in the classroom.

Policy 713 was not formally included in Holt's platform released last week, but it's been her position for more thana year that she would implement recommendations on the issue from the province's child and youth advocate, Kelly Lamrock,if she were to formagovernment.

She confirmed last week when she launched her platform that is still her position.

Lamrock's report, from August 2023, found that the revised Policy 713 violated the provincial Human Rights Act, the Education Act and children's Charter rights.

He recommended that staff verbally respect all students' pronouns without need for parental consent if they're in Grade 6, or higher.

Holt promisesanothercommunity care clinic

Liberal Leader Susan Holt announced another location for a proposed community care clinic, this one in Blackville, making for an even dozen communities she's promised the model for.

She has previously announced she would open 30 such clinicsbefore 2028, if elected as premier.

There is already a health clinic in Blackville, about 50 kilometres southwest of Miramichi, but Holt said it would be expanded to a collaborative care clinic.

That model would include doctors, nurses and other health-care professionals in asmall practice, aiming to keep patients without a doctor from seeking care at over-stressed hospitals, she said.

WATCH | Blackville clinic would save trips to Miramichi hospital, says Holt:

Blackville would get collaborative care clinic under Liberal government

4 days ago

Duration 1:18

Liberal Leader Susan Holt was in Blackville on Thursday to announce a promise to open a collaborative care clinic in that community in 2025. The Liberals say they would open at least 30 clinics across the province.

She's heard from doctors who prefer the collaborative care model, she said.

"They need that admin burden off of their plate. Doctors are spending time at fax machines and on the phone trying to deal with referrals when they could be serving patients."

The cost would fall under the $115.2 million over four years for the 30 clinics already promised, Holt said.

The leader was also asked by reporters about campaigning as a Liberal and being tied to the unpopularity of Justin Trudeau and the national Liberal Party.

She did not directly answer, but said health care was what most voters were concerned about when she goes door-knocking.

Greens would expand budget for mental health care

On Thursday morning, the Green Party announced it wouldincrease the mental health portion of the province's health-care budget to 12 per cent.

Party Leader David Coon took the podium in Monctontopromisetheincrease wouldensure that everyone would haveaccess to supportssuch aspsychotherapyunder Medicare.

WATCH | Coon explains how schools factor into his mental health plan:

Greens would increase mental-health budget by $85 million if elected

3 days ago

Duration 2:01

Leader David Coon said the Green Party would increase New Brunswicks budget for health-care services to 12 per cent of the overall health-care budget if elected, with some of those funds going toward supporting teachers in addressing mental-health issues in the classroom.

"This is so important because, currently what happens to too many people is ... after rehab, their trauma being untreated and mental illness being untreated puts them back in the same position they were [in] before."

Medicare only covers mental health services, including psychotherapy, offered within the public sector, such as inhospitals and via public health,confirmed Mandy McLean, executive director of the College of Psychologists of New Brunswick, in an email.

This accounts for long waitlists as providers choose to work privately, McLean's email stated. "Services by private practitioners are not covered by Medicare."

The Greens also promised to establish two new rehab centres for addiction treatment to boost the overall number of beds across the province.

Coon said there is a "menu" of priorities when talking about providing mental health services and they are equally important for youth, the seniorsand those facing homelessness.

Does carbon tax cost New Brunswickers? Yes and no, says new federal report

A new report on the federal carbon tax seems likely to keep the unpopular climate policy front-and-centre in the New Brunswick election campaign.

The study by the parliamentary budget officer, an independent watchdog, says the average household in the province would get $241 more in rebates than it would pay in carbon tax in 2030-31 bolstering the argument of the policy's supporters.

Only the wealthiest 20 per cent of households would pay more than they get back, and that difference is a mere $22, says the study.

But when the cost to the overall economy is considered such as lost jobs and investment income the picture changes.

That calculation shows the cost to the average New Brunswick household would be $457 more than it would receive in rebates in 2030-31.

Thursday's report, by parliamentary budget officer Yves Giroux, updates his March 2022 report that mistakenly included the separate industrial carbon price in its calculation of the impact on households.

That report was seized on by both sides in the carbon tax debate: by supporters who pointed out most households come out ahead on rebates, and by opponents who noted they lost out when the cost to the overall economy was considered.

The original report also didn't calculate any impacts in New Brunswick because the province still had its own provincial carbon tax at the time. It only looked at provinces where the federal tax and rebates were in place.

Higgs scrapped the provincial model later that year, arguing that allowing the federal price and rebates to apply in New Brunswick would help people cope with inflation.

"What this does right now is provide relief," he said at the time.

But the PC leader has since reverted to his argument that the federal levy is not affordable.

The new report issued Tuesday adds specific New Brunswick estimates.

All three of the province's main political parties campaigning in the Oct. 21 election say they want to eliminate or replace the federal tax.

Higgs saidhe'll launch a new legal challenge to the carbon price if he's re-elected, though it's unclear what the grounds for that would be, given the Supreme Court of Canada found the tax constitutional in 2021.

Liberal Leader Susan Holt saidshe will try to convince the federal government to exempt New Brunswick from the federal pricing standard and let the province adopt a different model with a more "robust" price for industry.

And Green Leader David Coon says he would adopt a cap-and-trade system, similar to Quebec's, that shifts the price to industrial emitters.

Another flaw with the original 2022 parliamentary budget office report is that it didn't compare the cost of the carbon tax to other, potentially more expensive climate change policies.

Nor did it compare the tax to the cost of doing nothing, forcing governments to shoulder the costs of increasingly extreme weather attributed to a warming climate.

The new report acknowledges that limitation and says it's not endorsing a "do nothing" approach.

The parliamentary budget office "has not assessed the policy merits of carbon pricing or alternative approaches to reducing [greenhouse gas] emissions," it says.

"Providing comparative policy analysis is outside the scope of the PBO's mandate."

The election is Oct. 21.

Standings at dissolution:PCs 25, Liberals 16, Greens 3, Independent 1, vacant 4.

Where the leaders are today

Liberal Leader Susan Holtwill be making a women'shealth announcement in Moncton.

Progressive Conservative Leader Blaine Higgshas no events scheduled on Friday.

Green Leader David Coonis making a senior-care announcement in Riverview.

For complete coverage, here is a link to CBC'sNew Brunswick Votes 2024 stories.