Afternoon Pint
Afternoon Pint is a laid-back Canadian podcast hosted by Matt Conrad and Mike Tobin. Each episode, they invite a special guest to join them at a pub or microbrewery to get to know them a bit better. Conversations cover a wide range of topics, including Entrepreneurship, business, Arts, pop culture, music, science, society, Life stories, experiences, you get the idea...
Our aim is to create a show for everyone (even non-Canadians.) We create a welcoming atmosphere where guests can share their perspectives with transparency. Essentially, Afternoon Pint is like heading to the pub after work to catch up with some friends through your headphones or stereo. We are Nova Scotia's #2 podcast, but we pretend we are number 1!
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Afternoon Pint
Shannon Miedema and Lisa Roberts - Halifax's Federal Hopefuls for the next MP
Liberal Candidate Shannon Miedema and NDP candidate Lisa Roberts share their visions for representing the great great city of Halifax at the federal level, answering both prepared questions and random selections from our "Bucket of Democracy." Conservative candidate Mark Boudreau was invited but unable to participate despite multiple scheduling attempts.
We cover a variety of complex issues in a short time and candidates were challenged by quickly diverting their attention from one issue to the next. Both candidates stood up wonderfully and we'll leave it to the listener to decide who is the best candidate for them.
Topics discussed include: Affordable housing, Canada-US relations, Inter provincial trading, climate action, social connection, the toxic drug and overdose crisis & more.
Election day is April 28th, but voters can cast their ballots earlier at advance polls opening April 18th or at the Elections Canada office on Quinpool Road.
Kimia Nejat of Kimia Nejat Realty
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Hello listeners and welcome to this special edition of Afternoon Pint. Today we'll be speaking with candidates for the federal running of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Speaker 2:Yes, our hometown. We're bringing back the bucket of democracy for a second time to pull random questions and get to know our candidates a little bit better. We started this process when the by-election was called and this is the only group that we'll be speaking to before the 2025 election.
Speaker 1:Without further ado, grab your pints and your popcorn as we talk on some of Canada's biggest issues, enjoy. Welcome to the Afternoon Pint. Who are we here with?
Speaker 3:We are here with Shannon Miedema, the Liberal candidate for the Halifax Riding for the federal election. Cheers.
Speaker 1:Shannon Cheers, Cheers, Shannon. So we got a few questions for you before we get into our big bucket of democracy.
Speaker 3:Sounds great.
Speaker 2:Let's go Alright. So let's start off with your road into politics. What's your story? Tell us about where you came from and why you're coming into politics.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm new into politics and I never thought I'd grow up to be a politician, so I'll start with that. I have been working for the city for the last 15 years. I'm the director of environment and climate change there, so working really closely with communities across the Halifax regional municipality, across levels of government, with the private sector, industry, the public, academics, ngos, to really try and drive positive change for our community. And I've hung out with a lot of politicians over the years and started to kind of think about politics in the fall as a way that I could scale my impact and do even more good for our city that I love so much. So started to have some conversations back then. And, yeah, here I am.
Speaker 2:Awesome, yeah, so I guess that's a really good segue into the next question of like. So what are some major objectives that Haligonians need representation for on a federal level?
Speaker 3:Well, I think Haligonians need representation across, whatever their interests and concerns and values are, and from my perspective, the role of a member of parliament is to do that, is to listen and reflect and advocate and be a strong voice for Halifax at the government table Right. And I've been able to do that in a smaller way in the job that I've had here in Halifax. I get to champion the great work and the great people of Halifax across the country. I've done it internationally and it's one of my absolute favorite things to do and I think I could do a great job for us in Ottawa.
Speaker 2:Awesome, oh, I like that. And what values do you think that you and your party, like party leader, align with the most? So, now that we know Mark Carney is the Liberal leader, so, yeah, what do you think that you guys align the most on?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So, because I was kind of considering this, I came to the Liberal Party thoughtfully and have been pleased with what I've seen the party do over the last number of years on things I really care about, like strong climate policy, like actual progress on truth and reconciliation. You know social progress, you know equity, prioritizing vulnerability while still focusing on economy and other important issues, and so, yeah, I think it's the party that most closely aligns with my values and, uh, yeah, okay, all right.
Speaker 2:So why should we vote for Shannon Well?
Speaker 3:what we've been hearing at the door is because we were in a by-election since March.
Speaker 2:The 2nd you get a longer election process. That's right.
Speaker 3:We had a three-week head start here in Halifax compared to the rest of the country, and so it's been a great education to actually hear what is top of mind for folks and what are we hearing most? And really what we're hearing almost every door is fear and concern and sorrow for what's happening between the Canada-US relationship and really some relief and some optimism that Carney is now at the helm of the Liberal Party and thinking that that might be a strong choice for Canada in navigating Trump and tariffs and figuring out how to build a resilient economy that's less intertwined with our American counterpart. I've been pleased with the strong approach that the party's taken so far and the things that they're rolling out kind of every day or so, really trying to figure out how to number one, try and stop the tariffs in the first place. Number two, you know, have retaliatory tariffs and then take that money and use it to help people right now that are getting impacted. And number three, like let's not ever let this happen again.
Speaker 3:Let's not be asleep at the wheel. Let's find new markets and new ways of running our country.
Speaker 2:No, that's great. And last, thing, I just want to give you an opportunity to like tell people about you, like where are you from? Let people know who you are as, like, a person, not just the politician.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for sure. Thanks, and I actually find that the hardest question to answer. Funny enough, letting people in. But no, I grew up in Ottawa and I am the oldest of three siblings. I did my undergrad at Queen's University. Environment's always been my longstanding passion, so I did environmental science there and I came to Halifax to go to Dalhousie to do my master's. My husband now husband came to do law school at Dalhousie and we fell in love with Halifax.
Speaker 3:I'm a quarter Newfoundlander. My grandmother was born and raised in Newfoundland, so I kind of feel, yeah, I'm not like like the 100% come from away maybe. Also, I've been here for, yeah, 23 years and yeah, we used to travel out east every couple of summers and visit our relatives in Newfoundland. I love this part of the country. I love Atlantic Canada and, having worked for the city, you know I just I love, I love the community, I love the history, I love that we're a port city, I love that we have all these things going on and we're just the right size. You know we have. You'll always see someone you know at the market or at a concert, but you don't know everybody. Right, it's like the perfect size, perfect size for me.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, my husband and I decided to make our lives here. We have three kids that we're raising. They're 14, 12, and 8. So busy, busy, busy. The husband is a lawyer, he owns his own law firm and, yeah, we love camping, everything outdoors. We have a four-year-old border collie that keeps us on our toes and yeah, just love traveling and, yeah, it's been really great.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so the kids are blue nosers.
Speaker 1:Sounds like you've got a busy busy life.
Speaker 3:Yeah, a great but busy life.
Speaker 2:I've always said that when someone leaves their home and chooses to make my home their home, that's what bigger compliment can you possibly get?
Speaker 3:Well, that's what I think so great yeah.
Speaker 2:So all right. So I think that's a good little kind of intro to who you are, and I think what's best for anyone who's listening to the show is we move right into the bucket of democracy. Anyone who has listened to our mayor debate quote unquote debate show.
Speaker 1:So yeah, so to the listener. Right now we have a bucket of democracy too, very crudely written in black marker here and it says Fed MP edition at the bottom. So this is an assortment of random questions that are very relevant right now, in this time. If you're voting in the next election, you might be interested in some of the answers we're about to pull here, so we're going to pull them at random. Question number one. Oh, and you get points yeah.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, are you judging me on this? Well, I mean. Nobody told me that.
Speaker 2:Have you ever watched Whose Line Is it? Anyway, we award points, but they don't really count. Yeah, we just gotta give random points.
Speaker 1:Alright, and we call you out if you don't answer the question. But, other than that we're really nice. Okay, given that some countries own their natural resources, which can result in the wealth of their nation, would you support the government getting involved with owning and selling its resources? I can reread that if I read that weird.
Speaker 3:No, I think I got it. I was just kind of questioning whether we do or don't own our resources right now, unless I misunderstood the question.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I guess it's really more. This is more of a trade question, matt.
Speaker 2:It's a yeah, I would say like the intention of when we were talking to people, so when we were talking well and also like actually tuning, like the government act because we have businesses that go in and mine and own those resources essentially and sell them off. Yeah, so it would be more like canada is now the oil company type of thing.
Speaker 3:So, or whatever what I will say is that canada has long been an export economy and we have been blessed with a bounty of natural resources, and I think that they get used and profited from in different ways.
Speaker 3:I think at this time that we're in right now, it's really important for us to be thinking of ways to grow our export economy in a fashion that doesn't set us back on other priorities. So I would like to see us focus on wind resource. You know, halifax, nova Scotia, has a massive offshore wind resource and a great onshore wind resource, and I really think that that's something that we can. We can use for our own benefit. We can also grow our export economy on that. There's lots of work going on there now. There's the potential for it to actually create green hydrogen market, and that's something that a lot of people are talking about in Europe and Canada and everywhere and we can be leaders in this space and we can grow kind of an entire sector with good jobs and good money in things like that. I don't presume to know about mineral rights in any great detail, so I'm not going to comment on that.
Speaker 2:No, that's fair. That's fair. Yeah, I'll give you the point. Yeah, there you go we get the point Okay, one point.
Speaker 4:Okay, fine, I'll try harder next time.
Speaker 3:Oh, you only get one point. You only get one point or you don't get the point. I was like is max five. Yeah, it's thumbs up, though no no, we've given half points full points or no points.
Speaker 1:Okay, oh, we didn't give a half point. You're right, we've given half points. We already gave him the full. So there you go.
Speaker 2:Can't take it back now. So what policies can a government implement to have the house function in a more kind manner? As we know, it can be a bit chaotic and not so kind.
Speaker 3:That's a really great question. I do know that there are ethics, written ethics things that people abide to, Even in a campaign. You have to sign on that you're going to abide by the campaign rules as a candidate, and I think that's really important. Right Like this is not a time to be name calling and acting like bullies and acting like children. We really need to be adults here, we need to be professional and we need to have constructive and collaborative conversation. Uh I I. If there are any ways for the house to increase its ability to enforce that level of expectation and respect, I think that would be wonderful. I think we definitely need to change the tune.
Speaker 1:Point awarded. Yeah, I like it. Oh, it's your turn. Keep going, keep moving along here, see how many points you can get.
Speaker 3:Okay, competition, I love it.
Speaker 1:All right. What does responsible immigration look like to you?
Speaker 3:Yeah, good one. I think responsible immigration is immigration into our country in a way that enables the people coming in to thrive. So they need housing, they need infrastructure, they need education, they need jobs, while not disadvantaging the people that are here. Right, it's just a balanced consideration. And you know we need newcomers, we need immigrants. I think they add to what it is to be Canadian. I think they add to the rich fabric of Canada. We are wonderfully multicultural and I think that you know it always helps. I think I look at my children and they don't even see diversity in the way that we did in my generation or let alone in my parents' generation. Like, I think it's wonderful what's happening in that respect. It's just, we need to make sure that. You know. We want everybody to thrive as Canadians, regardless of whether they're new or have been here for generations.
Speaker 1:You happy with that one. I think it's really good. All right, perfect, let's get going.
Speaker 2:That kind of goes back to the whole compliment that I say when someone chooses my home to be their home. It's the ultimate compliment there you go Love it All right. So next one here is should health care be fully taken over by the federal government or it'll be left for the provinces to manage?
Speaker 3:That's a tricky one. I would say that one of the things that's the hardest to manage in Canada which is also part of the beauty of Canada is that we have jurisdictional divide across levels of government on really important issues and often a shared responsibility or shared mandate. It happens in healthcare, it happens in housing, it happens in environment. It happens across a lot of considerations, and I think what we need is really good, strong, clear understanding of whose role and responsibility what is and to make sure that the funding gets where it needs to be. And I do think you know, at times it's important for the federal government to step in if there's something of national import that really needs to be that all provinces and territories need to get on board with. I think that that is an important role for the federal government. I think that the Liberal Party has done that in some instances recently.
Speaker 2:If you can speak a little bit further on that. Deeper, because do you think that we could almost see a more fair distribution of doctors throughout the country if the feds just took that over?
Speaker 3:I don't know what the answer is on.
Speaker 4:that. That's fair, that's a fine answer.
Speaker 3:I don't know how that would play out. I don't think that would help the relationship between the federal government and the provinces and territories, because of that jurisdictional divide. I do think we need to keep finding solutions to deal with the major healthcare issues that we have here.
Speaker 2:That's fair. That's a fair answer. That's a real tough question. That's a real tough question. That's a very tough question. Yeah, very hard question.
Speaker 1:No, we like the questions with no winning answer.
Speaker 4:They're the fun ones to answer yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay, this question here where do you stand on medical assisted death or MAID?
Speaker 3:Where do I stand on it? Personally, I think it's an important piece of the progress that we're making in health care. I've heard lots of different individual stories and I think it's really important. It's also needing really careful policy so that it doesn't get misused or misdirected.
Speaker 2:And I would say we're still in really early stage of having this ability and this legislation and it needs a lot of people kind of at the table making sure that it works for everybody. No, that's good, that was quick, that was quick.
Speaker 3:Point. Yeah, it's good, as long as you know they're going to get points if they answer them. I know I'm going to be sad if I don't get 100%. You guys, you're quite the keener.
Speaker 1:You should have seen how slow the mayors were. Oh my gosh, you're way ahead of them.
Speaker 2:Way ahead. Yeah, the mayors answer like four or five questions.
Speaker 1:Except for Zoran.
Speaker 2:Oh, he went through it pretty quick. He was a machine.
Speaker 1:Okay. Will your government help remove and expedite the barriers with interprovincial trading? Say yes, well, yes, yes. I can say that because it's already been said also by Prime.
Speaker 3:Minister Carney. And yeah, I just keep wondering why we haven't done it sooner. But I think that's kind of what a lot of Canadians are reflecting on right now. You know, we got a little bit asleep at the wheel, reliant on our southern partner, and now we understand what that can do.
Speaker 1:There is another side of it, though, that it could choke out some smaller local businesses. Now, I've heard this. I don't know if this is true or not. Have you heard about that? Do you have concerns there?
Speaker 3:Well, I've spoken to several small medium businesses and different industries and I haven't heard anything negative about the idea. All all I've heard is like we've been asking for this forever. We really want this. We feel positive about it. Now, of course, it will depend on how this happens, like what the details are, but I think we have a great opportunity.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Love it, quick point. There you go.
Speaker 2:No, that's good, All right. So this is a you question. So, if you so, shannon, the person gets elected. What is the first cause that you want to fight for, to implement?
Speaker 3:The first cause.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like what's near and dear to your heart, that you're going to go in there and you're going to be like, listen, prime Minister Carney, this is what I want. You know I got a strong mandate and this is what I want for my people.
Speaker 3:So, outside of navigating what is critical to deal with first, like Trump, tariffs, economy, etc. Obviously my passion issue is climate and environment and always has been and will always be. And it's funny because working for the city, trying to drive climate action, try to better prepare our communities for what we saw in 2023, like floods and hurricanes and fires, like you know. We need to be resilient to those things, to reduce loss in those situations and be able to rebound as quickly as possible, and that takes. That actually touches on social considerations, economic considerations, you know, and the plan we brought forward is good for people, good for the economy and good for the environment. And I think that the conversation around climate really is shifting to show that if we do climate action in the right way, we're actually supporting all these other key issues. We have amazing economic development opportunities. If we act on climate, we can prevent loss, like we're seeing in the insurance industry which you well know with extreme weather events.
Speaker 3:Right Like this is, it's actually it has to be done, and I think we can do it in a way, as we're like trying to solve these other issues like the Trump tariffs, we can think about ways to progress on other key issues in Canada, and I'm really passionate about that. I think that there's lots of great conversations we could have about that. That would be my first one.
Speaker 1:Okay, well, you did a perfect job. That is all we have time for in our questions round today. Just one wrap-up question, derek.
Speaker 2:Well, basically, as a kind of a wrap-up, I want to give you just a minute or two to just whatever you want to say your message. Last thing to kind of pitch your last pitch for Shannon, yeah that's even harder than these questions.
Speaker 1:I'm so sorry.
Speaker 3:No, I mean to everybody listening. I hope that you consider your vote carefully. It's it's a very important election probably the most important election in Canada in all of our generations, and getting out to vote is so important. To exercise your right to vote. We are a democracy. We should not take that for granted, and I really hope to earn all of your support as we progress in this campaign. Election day is April 28th, but you can actually vote any day on Quimple Road, at the elections office or the advance polls open on the 18th of April.
Speaker 2:Awesome. And before we cheers, why don't you let the people know what beer you're drinking?
Speaker 3:Oh, I'm drinking the Dirty Blonde Nine Locks just like the color of my hair.
Speaker 2:Well, cheers to that. Good luck in your campaign. We really appreciate this thank you so much cheers cheers, and who are we?
Speaker 4:here with I'm lisa ro. I'm the NDP candidate in Halifax.
Speaker 1:Pleasure to meet you. Yeah, nice to meet you.
Speaker 4:It's great to be here with you All right.
Speaker 1:So welcome to our show. Here we have our bucket of democracy. We're going to dive into that in a minute, but first we're just going to go through a few questions that we're asking everyone today. Okay, so question number one your road into politics. What's your story?
Speaker 4:Oh, I'm going to need to condense this.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 4:But I'll share that. I did the campaign school for women back in 2011. And at that point I was actually watching a lot of municipal politics in Halifax and that was back in Peter Kelly's time and I was inspired by the leadership of Jennifer Watts, who at that point was a municipal councillor and she was just asking good questions and kind of being responsible. And I was also at that point home, having had my second kid in a couple of years and I had been a journalist, and I was feeling like maybe I had gone down that career path far enough. So, yeah, I did the Campaign School for Women in 2011. That eventually resulted in me supporting Jennifer in her 2012 municipal campaign Jennifer in her 2012 municipal campaign. I did slowly wean myself off of journalism and in 2016, I was asked and agreed to run for the NDP in Halifax Needham.
Speaker 2:Fascinating. I remember that, yes.
Speaker 1:Okay, so question number two what are some major objectives that haligonians need representation for on a federal level?
Speaker 4:I mean, for me, um, housing is just huge, um, it affects so many people and you know, we just saw the opening of the first new co-op building of any size on maitland street in halifax and I've been lucky to chat with, I think, four different households now that are in that building and it's so transformative. The one young couple I talked with had been moving every two years pretty consistently, either because of run eviction or because of rent know sales of the places that they were renting and just the sense for them that they can now settle into their life without needing to anticipate finding another home in a couple of years is so huge, really determined and consistent focus on increasing the housing options for people that are affordable and that are, you know, to a much greater proportion in the public sphere or in the nonprofit sphere, where you know the greatest profit isn't always going to be the motivation for the decision of the folks who own the property.
Speaker 1:Excellent, okay, great answer. We can't give a point for that one.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's okay.
Speaker 1:We're giving points away soon. We're close, the points get in from the bucket. Still a great answer. Okay. So next question what values do you think you and your party leader align with the most?
Speaker 4:I'm sorry, I don't know if I understand the question. Do you mean, in which values do I share? Maybe pick a value you really identify with?
Speaker 4:Jagmeet talk at you know, on more occasions than most folks, um, about how he just feels deeply that we're all connected. So, and and that for me really resonates in the way I I put it in a campaign video that you might've seen is we're all better off when we're all better off, like my wellbeing is not disconnected from the well-being of everyone else in my community, and that is true on so many different levels and it's actually really shown to be true in all kinds of research. You know, the more disconnected we feel, that's not good for our health. There's no individual problem solving our ways out of the housing crisis or the climate crisis and, in fact, connecting with each other and really like leaning in on that sense of connection is part of finding the pathway out of the challenges that we face. So, yeah, that's definitely one where I feel like I'm very much in alignment with him and I feel like that aligns with aligns with broader social democratic principles and priorities.
Speaker 1:Okay, so we're going to circle around the back a little bit here, but just tell us a little bit more about where you're from.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so I actually grew up on the west coast of Newfoundland.
Speaker 1:Oh, another Newfoundlander, Another Newfoundlander. How am I going to vote?
Speaker 4:No, so I grew up in Corner Brook. My parents had met in Labrador City in the 1960s. They got married here in Halifax in the late 1960s and then I was born in Ottawa, but we moved to Newfoundland, which is where my dad is originally from, in 1975. 1975, I was two, and so I lived in Corner Brook until I was 18, and then I came to Halifax, came to Dowell, very much wanting to be in a bigger place than the place where I grew up, and so Halifax was the choice, pretty obviously. Yeah, and so that, and so that's where I'm from, and I was away for six years from 1995 until 2001. I lived for about two years in Guatemala oh cool, that's very cool. About two years in Toronto, yeah.
Speaker 2:Not as cool as Guadalajara, not as cool, but I learned some stuff.
Speaker 4:I got to experience the big city and then about two years kind of split between Newfoundland and other places and then I very intentionally came back in 2001. Brilliant.
Speaker 1:Okay, so last question before we dive into the bucket why should folks vote for Lisa?
Speaker 4:I mean, I feel like I have built a lot of relationships and with the relationships comes a lot of knowledge about Halifax over more than 10 years. So I was five years serving as the MLA for Halifax, Needham, but for a number of years before that I was briefly executive director at Vieth House. Before that I was part-time facilitator of a project called the North End Community Circle and, of course, before that I was a journalist working for Information Morning at CBC Radio.
Speaker 4:So I just have put a lot of time in learning about the community and I have a lot of relationships that I can call on when I'm not certain about what the right path is. Or is this a cause that I want to put a lot of my time behind? I've got a lot of folks in the community that I can check in with to like get a couple different reads on a situation and then figure out like how can I be helpful? Because that's kind of what drives me, is I like to be helpful, I like to play a positive role to resolve issues or make life better for all of us collectively.
Speaker 1:That's fantastic. Well, Matt, I guess it's time we dive into the bucket.
Speaker 2:It's the bucket of democracy. Time you did the dun-dun-dun.
Speaker 1:Oh, dun-dun-dun. I have sound effects on this board.
Speaker 2:Want to try one.
Speaker 1:Nope, I don't know the order of them. Sorry, let's just continue. That's why I said don't, but anyway, it's all good.
Speaker 2:Okay, so this is basically what we do, is we give you 10 minutes. We're going to answer as many questions as you can answer.
Speaker 4:Oh my gosh, okay. So I should be fast because answers yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Just answer them honestly, don't give an incomplete answer. Okay, you want people to know your well-thought answers, right?
Speaker 1:You can get big points or little points. Not all points are created equal, all right.
Speaker 2:All right, you tell me when we're ready to go, Ready to rock Matt, All right, so all right. Question number one Ready to go, Ready to rock Matt, All right. So all right. Question number one In your opinion, what is the income dollar amount that should be considered in the highest threshold and what percentage of tax should that be? So like when you think about tax brackets, where should that be now in terms of household income, that highest tax bracket, and what should be? What do you think we should be taxed at that highest tax bracket?
Speaker 4:Oh, my goodness. I mean my immediate thought is that I think we need to add another tax bracket above the top one and then tax that one more. I think maybe the highest one, does the highest one, start at a hundred or at a hundred, and I I don't. I don't actually know exactly.
Speaker 2:It's a hundred and the highest tax is 126 or 127 or something like that. I think it's what it is. Yes, okay.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so. So my immediate thought is like I think we probably need another one above that and, and you know, go harder on that All right.
Speaker 2:All right, that is an answer and that is a point we give.
Speaker 1:A point Sounds good, okay, next question Should the federal government prioritize a pipeline feeding into Nova Scotia, and why or why not?
Speaker 4:Yeah, I mean I think I'm more sold on the idea that actually I saw Jagmeet talking about, in the immediate aftermath of Trump's first set of threats, who can keep track, which is of an east-west electricity grid?
Speaker 4:Oh okay, electricity grid Um yeah, because we know that you know a lot of the um. Currently a lot of like hydroelectric energy flows South um into the United States and that is the low lowest carbon electricity um that we have um available to us easily um or at least for baseload, in addition to, you know, solar and wind. And we haven't gotten the Atlantic loop done. But maybe if this was part of more of a nation building project where it's not so dependent on just like one region coming together but actually the whole country coming together, I can get more excited about that. The pipeline I've heard a lot of different things about the economics and I'm not convinced.
Speaker 2:Okay, no, that's fair, that's an answer. And you know what? I never actually heard about this east to west energy grid and I actually don't hate that idea. I want to read more about that.
Speaker 1:I like different ideas Awesome, yeah, I like it, and I actually don't hate that idea. I want to read more about that. I like different ideas. Awesome, yeah, I like it. Let's go.
Speaker 2:Whoops, there you go throwing things around. No bonus points now.
Speaker 1:You're throwing questions out of the bucket.
Speaker 2:All right. So what would your government's if you formed government, obviously what would your government's anti-racism strategy be?
Speaker 4:Whew, wow, that does not seem like a short question.
Speaker 4:That does not seem like an answer that I could give a short answer to. I will say that part of what makes the NDP special is our intentional diversification of our own caucus, and you know, obviously, like Jagmeet Singh is the only racialized national leader we've always had. But also if you look across the country at our candidates and also at our members of parliament, where the NDP is more diverse than the other parties, and so for me, that's really a thing that you have to work on with people.
Speaker 4:It's not, you know, lisa Roberts' idea of you know how do you attack or you know, address racism, but certainly thinking about it in terms of economics for me is really important because when you think about how Canada was settled and how we got to our present day, there were a lot of moments along the way when either racialized people or indigenous people were disadvantaged, were exploited, were left out.
Speaker 4:You know, when you think about the particular ways that Nova Scotia was settled in terms of who got land grants and who didn't, and you know who got secure title and who didn't, and so there's a lot of economic yeah, economic redress that needs to happen. I've been really excited about the organizing efforts, particularly amongst the African Nova Scotian community, around community land trusts, which is a neat way of recognizing that community economic development can happen and ownership of property can happen in a way that benefits community in the long run as well as the individuals, which is much more, I guess, aligned with my values than seeing property and the fact that you end up with a little piece of Mi'kma'ki and then you end up with all the benefit of the increasing property values. And how? Because you built the land. Oh no, you didn't build the land. You know like houses and buildings actually fall. You know they're like any other thing that is built.
Speaker 4:They depreciate over time and yet their value keeps going up and up, and that's because of the land right and so for me, um yeah, thinking about how do we, how do we redistribute land, or or reimagine how we treat land um is is pretty fundamental well, yeah, that's a tough question, but I think you gave us a real, a real necessary first step, that's.
Speaker 2:That's a good answer too, yeah, really good answer and I also like the fact that because, like I had this discussion with my uh, uh, with my wife on the weekend that you can't necessarily legislate people into not being racist, right, you have to just keep educating right and in, like you said, like lead by example yeah, yeah um, okay, uh, transgendered categories in sports seem to have many different points of view. Uh, how do you feel sport organizations should handle this sensitive topic?
Speaker 4:oh, my goodness, um, so first of all well, maybe, maybe this will just be my whole answer I I sort of don't accept the premise of the question in that, really, this is a non-issue or like such a vanishingly small issue that has gotten a huge amount of attention because men want to use it to divide us. And when you talk to women who are involved in sport, they're like we've got a lot of issues, you know, equal pay, equal playing time, equal media profile, like equal access to coaching resources, like there are so many issues for women in sport. This is not one. This is not one. And I've gotten to a point in my understanding of the transphobia that we see where I really just reject that there is any legitimate issue there. I really just reject that there is any legitimate issue there. It is just being used as a wedge and, yeah, I just full-on reject it as transphobia.
Speaker 1:I'm giving you the point on that one.
Speaker 2:That's a great answer. Yeah, good answer. All right, your turn.
Speaker 1:All right. Next question Canada is experiencing a drug toxicity crisis that is being fueled by synthetic opioids like fentanyl. What is one step we hope we can take to remedy this? So what's something we can do to help with the drug crisis in Canada?
Speaker 4:Oh, my goodness, you know people die because we don't have a safe supply of drugs, unsafe drugs with safer drugs. That I don't feel like I'm the best, the best prepared to respond to. But I know and, and you know, I'm just immediately my mind and my heart, my eyes are just immediately going to a funeral that my partner and I attended for the kid of somebody we worked with and I just know that I wish he was alive.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 4:I just wish he was alive.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so yeah, that's fair, that's fair and that's the thing. I think some of that stuff could be rolled out a little bit better. I know some. I watched something about some of the stuff in vancouver where it was not um, uh, like the promise that was made for these houses to be safe was not delivered. Yeah, I, I don't know who's responsible for it, so it's not like a dig in any particular government at all. I literally don't know who it just I saw this and someone went in and they wore like secret cameras and went in there and these clean, safe places didn't look clean or safe. Yeah, so yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah, but it does feel. Yeah, I would like to hear someone else address this question because oh, yeah, no, these questions all go back. So there's a. They're kind of all over the place. That's the whole whole point of it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, sorry, yeah yeah, the questions are meant to be all over. Yes, they're pulled from a million different places. We spend a lot of time finding canadian questions right across the country, so these are questions canadians are asking, right? Not all of them are questions that everybody likes.
Speaker 2:No, that's true, but we can do at least one more here.
Speaker 1:Okay, we got one more.
Speaker 2:So who do you think Canada can seek out as other trade partners if the relationship with the USA continues down the same path? It's on.
Speaker 4:So ourselves is what I would say.
Speaker 4:You know, the last two years that I was working, before this election, I was executive director of a nonprofit called Nourish Nova Scotia, and one of the projects that I got to work on there was the establishment of something called the Halifax Regional Food Hub, which is, I understand, like, currently under development, but it's been incorporated as a cooperative and I understand that they've hired their first, you know, general manager or executive director, and the idea with that food hub is to create a place where food producers, like farmers and food producers from mainland Nova Scotia, can drop off their goods and then have the food hub get those goods the last mile to the back doors of kitchens or, you know, the loading docks of stores that sell local wares, or non-profit organizations that constantly, you know need groceries and don't want to be spending sending their staff out shopping, shopping with flyers or schools, or the Nova Scotia Community College, and, and so I think there's so like I appreciate the reaction, you know, by Canadian, but we've really undervalued the power of local markets and circular economies which allow our money to circulate in more, in a more regional way, and so I'm I'm excited to see the kind of community economic development potential, that we can get some more energy behind so that we can be buying from ourselves.
Speaker 4:You know, obviously that's not going to be a full. That's not going to be a full uh piece of the answer, but I, I, I hope that it doesn't get lost no, you're right on par.
Speaker 1:A previous question we drew with another guest was uh, was the interprovincial?
Speaker 3:trade and, yes, right, localizing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so you're right on that same page of of yeah, yeah so that, that's brilliant yeah, we're with that.
Speaker 2:all right, awesome, very much with that. How many points did I get? Take a break, I didn't count.
Speaker 1:So we didn't count the last one.
Speaker 4:We were just going to tally them up at the end the points really don't matter.
Speaker 3:Okay, so I think you're right on par pretty well with the last guess.
Speaker 4:So it doesn't matter one way or another. Didn't speak too long, they were six very well-answered questions.
Speaker 1:They were very, and I have solace in that Not just well-answered, but like Honest, Well, very honest but, also unique.
Speaker 2:Like answers that you know, sometimes you get people who pick a certain lane on certain topics and these were some ones that were it was. You know you offered some things that I had not heard before, so Cool, that's really good.
Speaker 4:Thanks, good thing to consider, so just wrapping up now we're all done the hard part's over the hard part's over All right, now I might have that pint.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you said you were a red fan.
Speaker 4:I do like a red. Okay, I do like a red, any, beer in particular.
Speaker 1:You like you know, of a Nova Scotia.
Speaker 4:I mean, I've had the Very popular choice.
Speaker 2:Great, fantastic, yeah, one of the best.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so cheers to you.
Speaker 2:Thank you, oh sorry.
Speaker 1:She gets a wrap up. You get a wrap up. I'm so sorry. Anything you'd like to say about folks voting for you in this election? Yeah, this is your time to help. Yeah.
Speaker 4:I mean, I guess I just want people to remember that in Halifax we hadndp members of parliament for a full, you know, 18 years, right up until the trudeau government. Um. So, uh, alexa mcdonough famous iconic.
Speaker 2:And megan leslie, um megan was great megan was so great, megan was so great I think she actually won most popular mp one year, or something like that and she won like best rookie MP.
Speaker 4:Yeah, she won all kinds of things.
Speaker 4:No, she was fantastic and you know Megan and Alexa both were really amazing representatives of Halifax and they were also really important parliamentarians for speaking to issues and, you know, championing causes, and so I hope people remember that this is not just a competition for who is the prime minister, but it's like who's going to speak for your community, who's going to use their voice in parliament, who can we elect that we'll be able to reach out to, that we'll be able to work with um. It's a it's a long relationship between that person and and halifax, and and I hope that people will be excited as I am, um to have me step into their shoes and and try to really play that role. So Wonderful.
Speaker 1:Well, cheers to you, lisa. Cheers to you. Yeah, thank you.
Speaker 2:Good luck on the campaign.
Speaker 1:I know it's not easy, it's tough.
Speaker 4:I appreciate it. Nice to meet you both.
Speaker 1:Yes, absolutely, Take care. Well, unfortunately, Matt, it uh, it appears that Mark Boudreau can't be here. I know you and I both made ample attempts in every way and platform possible. Maybe just explain a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean we kind of felt that the show was going to be incomplete without having a conservative candidate here. I know I probably text him almost every day, at least every second day. I know I probably text him almost every day, at least every second day. We did try to move around the schedule a little bit but it looks like I couldn't make the time to come over here to record with us. But we have two really great candidates that gave us some great answers.
Speaker 1:Absolutely Right. I appreciate the time of both the Liberal and the NDP party. I feel, matt, like we really got some honest answers. The NDP party I feel, matt, like we really got some honest answers. I felt there was a you know, I think you said something really really great about the NDP and the tremendous amount of heart. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think. That's, I think, the two things that you take away. I mean, neither is really good answers in terms of like good or bad, but I think our liberal candidate gave us some really intelligent, like mind-thoughtful answers, and our NDP candidate gave us some really heartfelt, passionate answers Absolutely so very different, but whatever resonates with the listeners, I think you're going to get two very good answers from those people.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, I couldn't agree more, matt. So I guess, if you're still listening at this point, I sincerely hope you get up there and vote and help. Support, maybe encourage a friend to vote, a neighbor, someone who says they don't vote, they don't get into politics, twist their arm and say you know, it's a really good time to start.
Speaker 2:Yeah, whoever you vote for, just get out there and exercise that vote.
Speaker 1:Well, Matt, cheers to your brother on another fun, successful bucket of democracy. Cheers On to the next one, man Cheers.
