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Conservative Party of Canada
Leader: Stephen Harper
http://www.conservative.ca/So, what's this party all about? This Party Profile gives you all the info you need, from a description of the party to a summary of their policies. If you like what you see, visit their website for more information.
We assembled the content for this profile from the sources listed at the bottom of the page. If you notice any incorrect information or have any questions, please get in touch with us using our contact us form. We (heart) feedback.
The Conservative Party, led by Stephen Harper since 2004, falls to the center-right of the political spectrum. The federal Conservatives tend to favour small government, individual freedom, and less government intervention.
After losing three successive elections to the Liberal party from 1993-2000, the Reform party and elements of the Progressive Conservative party began negotiations to "unite the right" and create a single party. This was completed in 2003, when the Canadian Alliance (the successor to the Reform) and Progressive Conservatives agreed to merge into the present-day Conservative Party of Canada. The new party elected Stephen Harper as its leader in 2004, and went on to win both the 2006 and 2008 elections.
Although today's Conservative party was officially formed in 2003, there has been always been a Conservative party in some form since 1867. When he was first elected as Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald was the leader of the Liberal-Conservatives. The party they dropped the "Liberal" portion of the name a few years later, and in 1942 became the Progressive Conservative party. Throughout these years, Conservative governments have strongly influenced policy in Canada: John Diefenbaker introduced the Canadian Bill of Rights (a predecessor to today's Charter of Rights and Freedoms), and Brian Mulroney signed Canada's first free trade agreement with the US.
The Policies and Priorities section was last updated in March, before the 2011 federal election was called. As you may know, candidates and parties make lots and lots (and lots) of promises during elections. So many, in fact, that we can't keep up with them. This Party Profile is a general summary. Get the most up-to-date platforms and information straight from the party's mouth here.
| Issue Area | Policy | Source |
| Accountability and Transparency | Ministers must be accountable for the policies they implement. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 9 |
| Support an efficient public service and whistle-blower protection. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 9 | |
| Support strengthening internal audits and giving the Auditor General easy access to all documents from all federal organizations. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 9 | |
| Eliminate waste and unnecessary overlap. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 9 | |
| Agriculture | Promotes consultation between farmers and government, fiscally responsible farm subsidies. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 41 |
| Supports bilateral and multilateral agriculture agreements and a free wheat market. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 41 | |
| Arts and Culture | Supports arts and culture programs. Government support linked to accountability and ongoing scrutiny. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 39 |
| Broadcasting and Telecommunications | Focus the CBC-SRC on its mandate as public broadcaster and allow flexibility for private broadcasters. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Childcare | Supports Universal Child Care Benefit rather than a national childcare plan. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 28 |
| Copyright Legislation | Support access to copyrighted works for educational purposes. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Supports better education on copyright laws. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Eliminate levy on blank recording materials. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Corporate Taxes and Subsidies | Reduce business taxes | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Reduce capital gains tax and eliminate tax on capital gains that are reinvested. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Payroll taxes should not collect more funds than required for Employment Insurance. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Close loopholes such as offshore tax havens. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Crime and Justice | Designate three-time serious offenders as “dangerous offenders," and no parole before 25 years for those with life sentence. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 34-36 |
| Mothball the gun registry, introduce firearms control and monitoring measures. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 34-36 | |
| Work to combat organized crime | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 34-36 | |
| Try violent and serious repeat offenders 14 and over as adults. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 34-36 | |
| Introduce tougher sentences for cyberstalking and child pornography. | ||
| Additional charges for those who harm pregnant women if the unborn child is harmed or killed. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 34-36 | |
| Defence and National Security | Focus on "Canada First Defense Strategy". Increase presence in Arctic. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 50-51 |
| Increase resources to military to provide support to NATO and Afghanistan mission. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 50-51 | |
| Continue support for NORAD and disaster response coordination. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 50-51 | |
| Provide best possible service to veterans and their families. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 50-51 | |
| Increase foreign intelligence gathering and increase intelligence agency cooperation. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 50-51 | |
| Democratic Reform | Allow more free votes for MPs. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 10-11 |
| Supreme Court nominees should be approved by both the Justice Committee and a free vote in Parliament. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 10-11 | |
| Supports the election of Senators. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 10-11 | |
| Supports independent judicary. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 10-11 | |
| Believes Parliament, not the courts, should make laws. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 10-11 | |
| Economy | Promote less government intervention in the economy and lower taxes. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 15 |
| End subsidies to private companies. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 15 | |
| Supports reducing protectionist policies and promoting free trade. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 15 | |
| Education | Create an independent Canada Education Transfer, and keep scholarships and bursaries tax-free. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 27 |
| Limit the inclusion of parental income and assets in assessment of loan application, provide preferred interest rates on student loans. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 27 | |
| Environment | Shift from voluntary to mandatory emissions standards. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 22-24 |
| Promotes alternative energy and fuel sources. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 22-24 | |
| Long term funding for cleaning up of contaminated sites. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 22-24 | |
| Work with USA to protect Great Lakes and St. Lawrence, and ensure all ships have proper ballast water treatment technology. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 22-24 | |
| Cut air pollution from industry in half by 2015, create domestic carbon cap and trade system. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 22-24 | |
| First Nations and Northern Communities | Develop legislation and establish standards for the delivery of federal programs to Aboriginal Canadians. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Replace the Indian Act with modern frameworks which would transfer full legal and democratic responsibility to First Nations people. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Empower the Auditor General to review the spending of Aboriginal governments and organizations that receive government funding. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| In order to be recognized, Aboriginal rights should have to be included in the Constitution and Charter of Rights and Freedoms. These collective rights should be balanced with with individual rights in the Charter. | ||
| Comprehensive claims should be settled in a way that balances the interests of Aboriginal Canadians with those of Canada as a whole. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Adopt measures to resolve the backlog of land claims. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Encourage lending for private housing and businesses, transfer reserve land titles to willing First Nations. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Create a matrimonial property code to protect spouses and children in cases of marriage breakdown. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Offer choice in schooling to First Nations if it is agreed upon by all parties. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Fiscal Policy | Proposes that the government should enact balanced budget legislation. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Fisheries | Work cooperatively with provinces and territories to protect and enhance all fish stocks. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 43 |
| Commits to taking custodial management of the Nose and Tail of the Grand Banks and the Flemish Cap. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 43 | |
| Support investment in scientific knowledge and give decision-making power to affected regions. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 43 | |
| Food Safety | Ensure accurate labeling and testing of imported food products. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 41 |
| Foreign Policy | Increase accountability and clarity of foreign aid criteria. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 47-48 |
| Promote economic and political development in the North, transfer "provincial type" responsibilities to territories from Federal departments. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 18 | |
| Gun Control | Repeal gun registry, promote mandatory minimum sentences and more police on streets. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 35 |
| Healthcare | Supports stable federal funding for healthcare. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 25-26 |
| Promote a mix of private and public healthcare. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 25-26 | |
| Support creation of national standardized quality indicators. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 25-26 | |
| Immigration | Focus on transparency, efficiency, compassion, family reunification, and encouraging skilled immigrants. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 44-46 |
| Pilot projects to address serious skill shortages and attract temporary workers to Canada, while lowering landing fees. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 44-46 | |
| Improve immigrations processing, create workable system for recognizing credentials and experience. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 44-46 | |
| Continue and promote fairness in refugee program. Speed up appeals process. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 44-46 | |
| Language Rights | Supports equal status of English and French, and the promotion and protection of indigenous languages. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 38 |
| North American Trade and Integration | Maximize cross border trade by making flow of goods, services, and people more efficient. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 19 |
| Pursue an agreement on crossborder ID standards. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 19 | |
| Nuclear Energy | Supports nuclear energy. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 18 |
| Personal Taxation | Reduce personal income tax | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Quebec Sovereignty | Supports the Official Language Act and consolidating Quebec's position within the Canadian federation. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Rural Areas | Rural industries must be a priority for federal government. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 40 |
| Same-Sex Rights | Supports defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Science and Technology | Increase university-based research, promotion of Canadian research and development | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Create an independent Chief Scientist to provide scientific policy analysis. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Supports funding of innovation, technology and research through granting councils. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Expand Scientific Research and Experimental Development tax credit given to private businesses. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Seal Hunt | Supports the seal hunt and removing international trade bans. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 43 |
| Senior and Low-Income Citizens | Oppose the mandatory retirement age. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Those over 65 should only pay EI if they qualify to receive the benefits. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Supports tax incentives for non-professional caregivers. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Increase punishment for elder abuse. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Support tax relief and income support to make home ownership and renting more affordable. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 | |
| Women's Rights | Women should not suffer from discrimination in workplace. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
| Women should be entitled to equal pay for equal work. | 2008 Conservative Party Policy Declaration Pg 13 |
History - Conservative Party of Canada
History of the Liberal-Conservative Party of Canada - The Quebec History Encyclopedia
NGOs
NGO - three letters you might have seen tossed around that seem to be doing something, but what? NGO stands for Non-Governmental Organisation, which means a non-profit group or association that acts outside of institutionalised political structures.
Bill Tracking Database
The Great Bill Tracking Database. Great resources on keeping track of Bills.
