The Six-Pack versus the Family-Pack

Pundits are increasingly referring to this election campaign as a battle between two competing visions, two sets of clear choices. That’s the way I read it as well following the first week of the election. For months in the Liberal caucus it was readily apparent that the jet fighters versus family care, or super-prisons as opposed to post-secondary education, was becoming more stark by the week. But for the public those contrasts only became more visible in this past week. And the distinctions are vivid. One is about a kind of “salt and pepper” sprinkled indiscriminately, whereas the other is the about the steak.That contrast emerged late last week when the PM announced his $275 million tax credit for adult fitness. It would provide a tax break for up to $75 for those who claim the full $500 in gym membership fees. The credit won’t be available for years yet, at least until the deficit is paid off. It’s one of those small goodies that fiscal Conservatives despise but which the governing Conservatives distribute freely because they believe that, as retail politics, they are golden. And they are best suited to the wealthy – another characteristic of the government’s overall tax policy. Researchers from the University of Alberta and Queen University jointly published an article producing data that showed tax credits such as this one only benefit wealthier families in Canada. No one who is poor, or most single parents, can afford a gym membership in the first place.As this announcement was being made, Michael Ignatieff was talking about the Liberal “Family Pack” – an array of incentives designed to deal with the more structural challenges facing modern families. The Passport to Learning, early learning and child development, energy-efficient home improvements, pension security, enhanced Employment Insurance, family caregivers, and learning benefits for veterans - all were included in the Liberal platform.The contrast between the two incentives has at last offered Canadians a clearer understanding of the differences between what the two main parties are offering. But it is in the scope of the policies that the clear difference is discerned. Harper’s plan for wealthy families is sure to be welcome but is limited in participation. Ignatieff’s policies deal with the growing structural deficits meandering their way through Canadian family life. They build for the future in every corner of the country and they are more expensive because of their depth of intervention.The Harper plan will cost $275 million and won’t be available for at least five years. Ignatieff’s “Family Pack” will cost more but will come from the cancelled $6 billion corporate tax cuts and will be implemented immediately. Two different views on policy and its effectiveness. For Liberals it’s about all families; for Conservatives it’s about wealthy families – their base.So, the choices are now clearer than they have been for two decades. It’s the “six pack” against the “family pack” and the option is yours. Personally I’ll take education over abs any day, especially where my kids are concerned.