Todays wind up
Layton promises increases to health care totaling $165 million. Though I am starting to believe that the problem with Health Care is how the budget is being spent and not how much money is being spent based around Canada ranking 3rd in the world in per capita health care spending.
http://www.canada.com/news/decision-...683/story.html
Harper hits Atlantic Canada, in his speech this morning he re-iterated budget promises, and extended things like Income supplementing through EI, Student Loan reforms especially for part time working students etc.
http://www.canada.com/news/decision-...142/story.html
Ignatieff re announces his family care plan, which is worth a billion dollars and includes 6 months worth of EI for people who want to take time off to care for family members ad family care benefits for low and middle income families.
If I go by calculations based on the student passport, half a billion to a billion on the day care program, a billion dollars today on EI reform, he's well over 2 billion in promises and I know I'm forgetting one.
http://www.canada.com/news/decision-...686/story.html
The Captains terrible analysis.
The Conservatives are running on their budget, its certainly not sexy, but if the strategy works they're hoping that the average Canadian will wonder why the budget wasn't passed. The Conservatives are now able to somewhat effectively counter the whole Liberal argument of out of control spending to an extent.
I'm not a big fan of the Liberal spending promises, but they're catering to the family voters which should be successful. It doesn't shift my vote as these programs don't effect me, and the grandious spending promises are just that. But Ignatieff is doing better on the campaign trail then I thought he would, but his biggest hurdle is goint to be the head to head debates.
Layton has run a really lack luster campaign so far, and his campaign promises especially the credit card reform in my mind are typical NDP, he's bleeding seats to the Liberals, while the Conservative support isn't being dwindled. I would expect that the NDP will be relegated further back towards the rear walls of the chamber unless Layton kicks it into gear and at least in Eastern Canada tries to go after Liberal seats. I also don't think that Layton is helping his voter base in Western Canada with his attacks on the energy sector.
Elizabeth May is launching legal action to be included in the debate, chances are she'll once again be included so that we can hear her rudely yelling "He just doesn't get it" everytime Harper opens his mouth to speak.
I haven't been following the Bloc campaign all that much.