As a unifying, Canada-wide vision for this country, my vision is one of hope and inclusion. It consists of assuring economic prosperity and equality of opportunity for all, promoting arts and culture and restoring Canada’s rightful place in the world.
As part of the renewal of our party, its next leader has to be open to the aspirations of members and supporters of the Liberal Party all across Canada. Throughout my campaign, I will be talking with you about issues that concern us all. Here are some of the main objectives I would like to discuss with Canadians, suggesting the pragmatic and innovative approach that I am convinced will get Canada back on track.
- Economic prosperity must be extended to the whole country and include Canadians living in rural communities, the North and remote regions. This requires upgrading our physical and digital infrastructures in order to ensure business development and access to information. It also means promoting research and development, to both improve our productivity and promote innovation in clean energies.
- Canada’s demographic growth is an economic and financial issue. The well-being of our senior citizens requires adequate funding of their retirement and the health system, both of which can be assured in part by welcoming new immigrants. In this context, better recognition of qualifications and family reunification could play a leading role.
- Our young graduates are having increasing difficulty in acquiring their first work experience and too many are not finding work in the field of their choice. Canada should make greater use of tax incentives, to motivate companies to offer our young people their first work experience as well as to encourage Canada-wide mobility and the acquisition of international experience.
- Canada is rich in resources and should take advantage of them. But the exploitation of natural resources must occur with much greater respect for the rights of Native persons and assure protection of the environment. It must also guarantee maximum economic spinoffs for each region.
- By introducing strictly repressive measures, the Harper government has distorted the Canadian criminal justice system. We must restore the courts to the place they should hold in the administration of justice. We must also stress prevention as well as participatory and remedial justice.
- Arts and culture create a country’s soul. They shape our identity and contribute to our economic prosperity. It is therefore the responsibility of the government to create a positive climate for Canadian artists and artisans, so that they can make their mark nationally and internationally and assure the country’s influence.
- Since the advent of the Harper government, the image of Canada on the international scene has lost most of its luster. A foreign policy that made us special and of which we were so rightfully proud is gone. We must restore Canada to the place it deserves in the world and resume our role as mediator, favouring negotiation and diplomacy ahead of military power. We must regain our reputation and again participate, as a leader, in the great international debates on peace-keeping and climate change, for example.
Learn more about the policies I’ve proposed to get Canada back on track:
Connecting Canadians: Martin Cauchon Calls for a National Broadband Strategy
Canada-China: Martin Cauchon will Launch Negotiations Aimed at Signing a Free Trade Agreement
“See Canada First”: Cauchon Proposes Canadian Travel Incentive Plan
Creating Jobs and Promoting Innovation in the Regions
Martin Cauchon Calls for a New Era of Canadian Foreign Policy on the World Stage