Now that the dust has settled, here’s a roundup of 10 new policies of the Conservative Party that passed at the party's weekend convention in Calgary — and why they're bad for Canada. The party wants the government to:
1. Bring in a less progressive taxation system to cut taxes for the rich and have less tax revenue overall to pay for vital programs and services.
2. Attack collective bargaining by putting an end to mandatory union membership because unions "limit the economic freedom of Canadians and stifle economic growth."
3. Undermine the ability of unions to bargain on an equal footing with employers by having an opt-out provision of union dues.
4. Require greater transparency on activities of federal public service unions in a bid to restrict their ability to fight for strong public services for everyone.
5. Gut public sector pensions in a race to the bottom on pensions so defined benefit plans become obsolete in both the private and public sectors — and retirement insecurity in Canada is universal.
6. Bring public sector benefits and pensions in line with the private sector to lower the bar for all — rather than raise the bar for everyone.
7. Hands off our guns.
8. Condemn the "discrimination of girls through gender selection" in a push to reopen the abortion debate in Canada.
9. Fight efforts to "legalise euthanasia or assisted suicide."
10. Let faith-based groups refuse the use of their facilities to people who don't line up with their beliefs.
Photo: jeffandgennine. Used under a Creative Commons BY 2.0 licence.