One of the great things about the policy landscape in Canada are the number of professors out there who are willing to devote their time and energy to providing advice to political parties, or who will be willing to evaluate their proposals. We had an example of this as professor Mark Jaccard at Simon Fraser University went and checked over the parties’ environmental platforms and did the modelling on them, and then graded them – and the Liberals came out ahead by quite a margin (and in the interest of trying to look “balanced,” the CBC declared that the Conservatives were “not far behind,” though it was literally the difference between an A- and a D).

https://twitter.com/MikePMoffatt/status/1433770709730344962

The full study not only evaluates the targets, but the policies and costs as well – because there are economic costs to some of these plans. Interestingly, he also tests the sincerity of those plans, which is not only a sense of how feasible they are, but also their history as a party of a willingness to do the heavy lifting, and that’s a pretty important measure. “Beware of politicians who promise big but have not subjected their promises and plans to assessment by independent climate policy modellers. In this regard, the NDP and Greens are suspect,” Jaccard writes, and it’s worth reading through why he gives them the scores he does. The economic damage that the NDP plan promises to do would never be agreed to by their union base, and the fact that it would require a police state for them to set the kinds of binding carbon budgets that they propose are demonstrations about how unserious the policies are.

What is disappointing in this is that the NDP in particular started making personal attacks against Jaccard, and trying to build lame conspiracy theories that he is somehow being paid off to pump up the Liberals and talk down the NDP, which is both ridiculous and is the kinds of sore loser tactics that we’ve come to expect. (Seriously, my reply column on a daily basis is full of Dippers with hurt feelings because I have the temerity to point out the reality of things like jurisdiction or the fact that you can’t willpower things into existence). Elizabeth May was among those who took swipes at Jaccard, for the temerity of being an economist and not a climate scientist – which is also ridiculous because economics is literally the science of allocating scare resources, and the fact that climate scientists are not offering policy solutions. Science is not policy, and that’s why it’s important to understand the difference between the two and how they complement one another – providing that you’re willing to listen and not get in a huff because someone pointed out that your implementation plans don’t belong in the real world.

https://twitter.com/MarkJaccard/status/1433891783524720641

On the campaign trail:

• Justin Trudeau made a stop in Toronto to reiterate his promise around mandatory vaccines to board planes or trains.
• Trudeau also said that the government would recognize provincial vaccine certification for international travel as an interim measure.
• Erin O’Toole was in Montreal to promise tough measures to combat gang violence.
• O’Toole told a Quebec audience he’d uphold a ban on “assault weapons” contrary to his platform, while gun lobby groups said this was upholding the 1977 ban only.
• Jagmeet Singh was in Quebec City to unveil his party’s Quebec-specific platform.
• Elections Canada has determined the spending cap will be $30.03 million for the Liberals and NDP, and $29.95 for the Conservatives (who are one candidate short).
• While the Conservatives are ready to pivot their campaign as the fourth wave picks up, and the NDP say they will “change course,” the Liberals won’t say if they will.
• The allegations against Raj Saini have everyone once again questioning Trudeau’s feminist credentials, as he ruled out a further investigation into the claims.
• The campaign manager for Conservative incumbent Cathay Wagantall is running a petition opposing masking policies in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, schools.
• Maclean’s talks to Gerald Butts about the state of the campaign.
• Chantal Hébert considers the TVA debate, and how strong performance by Trudeau in next week’s debates may yet save his campaign.

Good reads:

• Dr. Theresa Tam released new federal modelling showing that we could be up to 15,000 new daily cases by October if we don’t markedly increase vaccinations.
• The process for recognising Wet’suwet’en rights and title has been taking longer than everyone expected, in part because of the pandemic.
• The RCMP say that threats against Trudeau and other politicians spiked in the first six months of this year.
• Conservative Senator Salma Ataullahjan says she is being inundated with messages from Afghan women trying to flee the country.
• Doug Ford has prorogued the Ontario legislature until two weeks after the federal election.
• Jason Kenney has re-imposed mask mandates in Alberta, and is now paying people $100 to get vaccinated (rewarding people who are causing this fourth wave).
• Robert Hiltz excoriates Doug Ford’s being dragged kicking and screaming to vaccine certificates, and his inability to fix problems that are eminently fixable.
• My weekend column looks at what is in the Liberal platform, and how they’re underselling its main message.

Odds and ends:

Henceforth, the Governor General is to be known as Her Excellency, Mary May Simon, using her full last name rather than the one she has been using professionally. pic.twitter.com/TEhZXEeaun

— Dale Smith (@journo_dale) September 3, 2021

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