Homelessness has become a growing problem in the province, with 1,287 people in the Halifax Regional Municipality alone reporting being unhoused as of early October. The Conservatives have extended the rent cap by 5 per cent and plan to build 273 new social housing units, but the Liberals and NDP say the use of fixed-term leases undermines the rent cap and the government has done little more than ‘scratch the surface of what is needed to create affordable housing.

Cost of living

Conservatives promise to cut the province’s harmonized sales tax by one percentage point, from 15 to 14 percent on April 1, while implementing a province-wide school lunch program . The Liberals have called for a two-percentage-point reduction in the HST and free public transit, while the NDP says it would establish rent control and provide a tax credit to renters from low- and low-income households. means.

Climate change

The province has experienced a number of severe weather events that have damaged infrastructure and cost lives over the past three years. The Conservatives have pledged to abandon coal-fired electricity generation in the province by 2030 and revive an offshore wind industry. The Liberals and NDP will highlight the government’s controversial decision to scrap the Coastal Protection Act, which was passed by the Legislature with all-party support in 2019 but was never signed into law.

Ottawa

The Conservatives have made it clear they plan to make Nova Scotia’s relationship with the federal government an issue. They oppose Ottawa’s carbon pricing system and want the federal government to pay the full cost of work needed to protect the Chignecto Isthmus, between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, from flooding. However, the Liberals and NDP say the Conservatives are simply trying to distract the public from their own inaction on climate-related issues.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published October 27, 2024.

The Canadian Press