Welcome to the Policy Manual of the New Democratic Party of Prince Edward Island!
The New Democratic Party of Prince Edward Island believes that a more equitable and environmentally sustainable province is possible. But to achieve that we need broad social policies that share our wealth more fairly, bring better wages to our workers, better support those living on low incomes, bring more economic control to communities and protect the ecosystems which support us.
Over the past several decades as the power and influence of our corporate elites has grown and policies have been shaped to meet their needs we have seen increasing inequality on Prince Edward Island.
Workers are often forced to take precarious, poorly paid and unsafe jobs with unpredictable hours and schedules. Women are kept out of the workforce by an acute shortage of affordable and flexible childcare. Farmers find it hard to make a living using sustainable practices. A quarter of our children experience food insecurity and one half of single person households cannot afford average market rents.
At the same time lax regulation is taking its toll on our environment – the air we breathe, our rivers, our forests, our soil and our fragile coastal waters.
As you read through this manual you will see many policies addressing these issues.
The New Democratic Party of Prince Edward Island believes that we can build on PEI’s shared sense of community by investing together in economic projects and services which will support our neighbours and family members. We support greater public investment in public or community-based non-profit services such as childcare, renewable energy, pharmacare, dental and vision care, housing, transportation and internet services. Such innovative projects will strengthen our communities by providing good jobs with greater pay equity for women.
We support innovation in renewable energy technology and businesses, both small and large, which are good for our communities, our workers and the environment and help us move towards a carbon-free economy.
We believe that the success of an economy must be measured not by how much it exports, not by its Gross Domestic Product and not by the wealth accumulated by a few, but by how well we are sharing our commonly created wealth and lifting people out of poverty, how well the rights of the Indigenous people of Epekwitk are being respected, how well we are including Newcomers, how well we are including those with disabilities and other differences and how well we are taking care of the land and ecosystems for future generations.
Many are troubled by our present government’s high-handed lack of respect for democracy including the processes through which the people of Prince Edward Island have expressed their views. The New Democratic Party of Prince Edward Island believes in governing by listening to all citizens and learning from their perspectives. Our constitution firmly states our belief that “the people have a right to a voice in public policy through meaningful consultation and participation in all levels of public decision-making”.
You may wonder how all of these policy positions have arisen. They are based on resolutions which have been brought forward by members and approved at annual conventions since the Party’s foundation in 1961. There is often lively and rich debate around resolutions when they are being proposed for approval. Any member of the Party can bring a resolution forward and every member present gets to vote on its approval.
We hope you enjoy reading through the policy manual and find that it embodies some exciting visions for a just future!