Conservative candidate says he is driven to meet constituents’ needs

On April 28, residents of Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes go to the polls to select who will be their representative in Ottawa for the next five years. Conservative incumbent Jamie Schmale believes both he and his leader, Pierre Poilievre, have the answers to the problems facing Canada including how to deal with U.S. President Donald Trump, how to improve both the local and national economy, how to make Canadians safer in their communities and how to deal with Canada’s “ballooning deficit.”

In an interview with Kawartha Lakes Weekly, Schmale made it clear that he enjoys his job as a member of parliament and works hard to make sure issues important to local residents are not ignored by federal officials.

“I am dedicated to advocating for the people that I represent,” Schmale said, “and driven by the need to address the concerns of my constituents. Since 2015, I have worked and collaborated with individuals and organizations on local initiatives such as Save the Walleye and raising concerns and calling out mismanagement of rural infrastructure needs such as the Trent-Severn Waterway and the Bolsover Bridge. I believe that government should play an important, yet limited role in people’s lives.”

Schmale believes that the Conservatives, and their leader Poilievre, recognize what the big issues are facing Canadians beginning with what Schmale calls “the unjustified and uncalled for tariff threats coming from the president of the United States.”

He said if these tariffs go unchecked, they will have massive effects on the local economy and our relationship with the U.S., which has been Canada’s largest trading partner for decades.

“We must retaliate,” Schmale said, “targeting American goods in the following order: goods we can make ourselves, goods we don’t need, and goods we can get from elsewhere.”

Schmale does not want to see Canadian counter-tariffs become a cash cow for the federal government and wants to see “every penny in tariffs collected go to tax relief, with a sum set aside for targeted relief to workers hit hardest by the trade war.”

On the issue of the economy as a whole, separate from the impact of American tariffs, Schmale said the Liberals have badly mismanaged this portfolio.

“After 10 years of Liberal rule, our economy is crumbling,” Schmale said, “our industries are moving overseas; leaving Canadians with more debt, fewer job prospects and the lowest Gross Domestic Product per capital growth that we have seen in decades.”

Schmale, who has been local MP for 10 years, said a Conservative government will “greenlight liquid natural gas plants, mines, pipelines and refineries that will bring home our jobs and paycheques, make us less reliant upon the Americans and help us sell more overseas.”

He also suggested that all involved need to work with the provinces and the territories to eliminate trade barriers and bring home free and fair internal trade so that Canada can be self-sufficient.

On the issue of public safety, Schmale believes there is much to do.

“We have seen a serious increase in various forms of crime,” Schmale said, “over the past decade as a result of catch-and-release policies.”

With regard to the national debt, Schmale said this is a crisis that must be addressed.

“The federal government is spending more on servicing the interest on the national debt than they are on federal health transfers to the provinces and territories. Canadians are losing crucial funding for social programs because of the mismanagement of public funds.”

Schmale said the Poilievre Conservatives have ideas to address this issue too.

“For every (new) dollar spent by the government, a dollar must be found in savings. We will bring down deficits, income taxes and inflation…We will take the GST off new homes to save up to $50,000 on the purchase of a house so that our young people can afford a place to live like they could before 2015.”

Schmale promised the Conservatives would make a tax cut on work, investment, savings, homebuilding and manufacturing products in Canada.

“The purpose will be to bring home the half trillion dollars of investment that the (Liberal) government has driven out of our country to the United States.”

When asked what Canadians need to know about his new party leader, Pierre Poilievre, and team, Schmale said they are a hardworking group.

“Their dedication and expertise, that they exemplify on a daily basis, has made such a difference not only in Ottawa, but all across Canada.”

Schmale said he is looking forward to campaigning right across the newly constituted Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes, giving him the opportunity of travelling to many new communities that now make up the riding. He said he would attend all-candidates meetings in the riding.