The federal election campaign took a temporary detour Wednesday into whether Green Party Leader Elizabeth May would be excluded from the televised leaders debates. The broadcast consortium that independently governs debates, made up of representatives from CBC, Radio-Canada, CTV, Global and TVA, has decided that May would not be invited to take part.
May reacted angrily, and both Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff and the NDP's Jack Layton said they didn't mind her participation.Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper, appearing in Brampton, Ont., said the Tories were open to any number of formats, including one involving the Green Party. He specifically mentioned a one-on-one debate with Ignatieff."I hope that [the consortium] will consider the views of all Canadians, and everyone should be treated fairly," he said, speaking in French.
May scheduled a press conference for 1 p.m. PT in Vancouver, and CBC News has learned she has hired a lawyer to plead her case. May was initially denied a spot at the 2008 leaders debates as well, at about this point in the campaign, but in the face of threatened legal action and public opinion, May was allowed to take part.
Harper started the morning at an event with local candidates at auto parts manufacturer Hydroform Solutions in Brampton, Ont. He stressed his party's lower-tax plan for businesses and announced an extension of accelerated business write-offs for capital investments, which was propsed in the Conservatives' March 22 budget. He said this would Canadian companies invest in machinery and equipment to raise productivity and create jobs."If you want people to invest, you need to make it easy for them," he said. "Lowering taxes on investments will create and protect jobs for Canadians."
Layton reached out to small businesses, promising to cut their tax rate to nine per cent from 11 per cent and offering tax credits to help companies keep employees, but he said his party would also raise corporate taxes paid by big business to 2008 levels.
Speaking in Oshawa, Ont., Layton said the NDP would:
Offer a job-creation tax credit of $4,500 for every new hire. This would be a rebate of employer Canada Pension Plan and Employment Insurance contributions for a year. As well, there would be a $1,000 tax credit to the employer for people that are kept beyond the first 12 months. Extend capital cost allowances for machinery and equipment. Drop the small business tax rate from to nine per cent from 11 per cent.
Pay for this $2.2 billion program by raising the corporate tax rate to 2008 levels of 19.5 per cent from 16.5 per cent today (scheduled to drop to 15 per cent in 2012). The party estimates that the corporate tax increase would to restore $5.9 billion to general revenues.The NDP says it can create 220,000 jobs with its economic program.
May reacted angrily, and both Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff and the NDP's Jack Layton said they didn't mind her participation.Conservative Party Leader Stephen Harper, appearing in Brampton, Ont., said the Tories were open to any number of formats, including one involving the Green Party. He specifically mentioned a one-on-one debate with Ignatieff."I hope that [the consortium] will consider the views of all Canadians, and everyone should be treated fairly," he said, speaking in French.
May scheduled a press conference for 1 p.m. PT in Vancouver, and CBC News has learned she has hired a lawyer to plead her case. May was initially denied a spot at the 2008 leaders debates as well, at about this point in the campaign, but in the face of threatened legal action and public opinion, May was allowed to take part.
Harper started the morning at an event with local candidates at auto parts manufacturer Hydroform Solutions in Brampton, Ont. He stressed his party's lower-tax plan for businesses and announced an extension of accelerated business write-offs for capital investments, which was propsed in the Conservatives' March 22 budget. He said this would Canadian companies invest in machinery and equipment to raise productivity and create jobs."If you want people to invest, you need to make it easy for them," he said. "Lowering taxes on investments will create and protect jobs for Canadians."
Layton reached out to small businesses, promising to cut their tax rate to nine per cent from 11 per cent and offering tax credits to help companies keep employees, but he said his party would also raise corporate taxes paid by big business to 2008 levels.
Speaking in Oshawa, Ont., Layton said the NDP would:
Offer a job-creation tax credit of $4,500 for every new hire. This would be a rebate of employer Canada Pension Plan and Employment Insurance contributions for a year. As well, there would be a $1,000 tax credit to the employer for people that are kept beyond the first 12 months. Extend capital cost allowances for machinery and equipment. Drop the small business tax rate from to nine per cent from 11 per cent.
Pay for this $2.2 billion program by raising the corporate tax rate to 2008 levels of 19.5 per cent from 16.5 per cent today (scheduled to drop to 15 per cent in 2012). The party estimates that the corporate tax increase would to restore $5.9 billion to general revenues.The NDP says it can create 220,000 jobs with its economic program.
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