Whoever is chosen Vancouver's next mayor will inherit a compassionate city, according to poll results going before city council today.
An Ipsos Reid poll - attached to capital plan reports that are scheduled to be discussed in council today - shows that 37 per cent of Vancouverites think social issues should receive the greatest attention from council.
In response to the question, "What is the most important local issue facing the City of Vancouver, that is the one issue you feel should receive the greatest attention for Vancouver's city council?" Vancouverites replied:
- Social issues 37%
- Transportation 19%
- Crime 15%
- Taxation/government spending 5%
- Environment 4%
Non-Partisan Association mayoral candidate Peter Ladner told 24 hours the findings are a "measure of the compassion" Vancouverites have.
And while Ladner says his priority is also dealing with social issues, there's only so much a municipal government can do.
"All roads lead to the provincial government," he said. "There's where the money for social housing and treatment programs comes from."
That's where Ladner figures he trumps his Vision Vancouver opponent, former Opposition MLA Gregor Robertson.
"I'm committed to strengthening our relationship with senior levels of government," he said. "[Robertson's] only political experience has been trying to overthrow the provincial government; the same people we need to be working with."
Robertson was not available for comment yesterday, but Vision Vancouver councillor Heather Deal said the party wants to take a more hands-on approach to social issues.
"The fact is we already have people at the city who are doing what the province is technically in charge [of]," she said. "We should have more experts on homelessness, addiction and mental health at the city so we can deal with the issues."
Matt Kieltyka is a reporter for 24 hours.
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mariam
3 years ago
Foreign policy being ignored
yes, social issues are important, but Canada's role in the world is being ignored. There should be more focus on international issues.
Canada’s role in the world is not being covered in this election. Important foreign policy issues are not even making it onto the agenda. For this reason, I would like you to push the candidates to address important foreign policy issues. These issues should include international human rights issues, Canada’s role in humanitarian intervention and its leading role in implementing the “responsibility to protect” doctrine, the nature of Canada’s role in the development of “ third world” or the developing countries: Is foreign aid money enough or is there more that Canada should be doing? I would also like to see the candidates addressing how Canada will work with other countries to ensure that the need resources is secured in a sustainable way, and Canada’s global role in addressing and fighting climate change.
Canada has a big role in the world, as well as a responsibility to try and make a positive difference. It is the time the candidates acknowledged this and addressed Canada’s global responsibility.
sanamark
3 years ago
Civic elections
mariam, while I agree with what you say in many ways, the city level of government is really not the forum to address these issues. This is in federal realm of responsibility.
Blackbird
3 years ago
No compassion for the NPA!
So Peter Ladner criticizes Gregor Robertson for having worked to overthrow the BC Liberals and believes strengthening the City's relationship with the provincial government is where Vancouverites should pin our hopes for ending homelessness and solving other pressing social issues. Somehow, the prospect of strengthening ties with Gordon Campbell’s greedy, gutless clutch of Liberals in Victoria fails to inspire. Ladner expects us to place our genuine compassion in the hands of a government most would describe as arrogant and out of touch. He must think we're all stupid.
We are tired of being patronized, of having our intelligence insulted and of having our generosity as taxpayers mismanaged. Robertson shouldn’t be criticized for challenging the Provincial Liberals on allowing homelessness to explode under its watch while it finances a billion dollar expansion to Vancouver's convention centre. He shouldn’t be criticized for challenging the government’s denial of much needed services to developmentally challenged young adults unless their IQ is under 70 (What shall we call this, creeping eugenicism?). Nor should he be criticized for challenging their illegal tearing up of collective bargaining agreements and the firing of unionized health care workers. Then there’s the carbon tax enacted as we’re being gouged by big oil. The list is too long to enumerate here. Robertson should be praised for refusing to accept decisions by a government that is so clearly out of touch with the populace.
Why should we care what Ladner has to say about the compassion of Vancouverites? We learned about the NPA's compassion for the homeless when the party cut the social housing component from the Olympic Village development last year and the slowness with which it acted on freeing up other land for the Province to build more on. Nothing Ladner says now can erase his party's failure to address homelessness with the urgency it requires. He hasn't a clue what to do about the open drug market. All he has said on it since winning the NPA mayoral nomination is that he is frustrated by it. His compassion, isn't heartfelt. It rises and falls with opinion poll results. Not good enough! The people are looking for concerned leadership and the NPA isn’t offering any.
Vision Vancouver now has more than 16,000 members. This may, in part, be attributed to our compassionate citizenry finding something of itself in Robertson, in his party's incumbent Councillors and in the list of potential candidates his party has attracted to seek nominations for Council, School Board and Park Board. As we prepare to welcome the world in 2010, Vancouverites deserve and demand government that acts on principle in a proactive manner on social issues as opposed to one that reacts slowly and with incompetence to one self-imposed crisis after another.