(Halifax) Dr. Thomas Trappenberg has a message for Nova Scotians: “Strategic voting isn’t true democracy.”

The Green Party of Nova Scotia leader spoke at the group’s AGM on Saturday, April 29, calling on the citizens of the province to vote their principles.

One of the key points in the Green Party’s vision for a better Nova Scotia is to change the electoral system from first-past-the-post to a form of proportional representation.

“What the current system says, essentially, is that your beliefs have to line up all in one of two or three buckets. Plus, the system is designed to be combative. Imagine a collaborative Legislative Assembly. Imagine parties working together for the good of the province, not just in a forced way when there is a minority government. We need better elections, so that we can build better democracy.”

Peter Bevan-Baker, Green Party of PEI leader and MLA, also spoke at the AGM, saying, “If you keep voting for someone you don’t want, to get rid of someone you don’t want, you will keep getting a government you don’t want.”  Bevan-Baker was elected to PEI’s Legislature in May, 2015.

The Green Party of Nova Scotia selected its first thirteen candidates on the weekend, and is currently at 16 with more to be announced. The Green Party platform is set to be released Friday, May 5.  Thomas Trappenberg, who was voted in as party leader last November following several federal campaign runs, will seek office in Clayton Park West, where he has campaigned in the past.

“The Green Party stands for six principles: social justice, participatory democracy, nonviolence, sustainability, ecological wisdom and respect for diversity. All of those reflect the Nova Scotian character – think about the Coady Institute, about the Pugwash Peace Centre, Membertou’s business development work to ensure their sustainability.”

“Don’t vote against something, vote for what you believe in. Nova Scotians deserve to expect better,” said Trappenberg.

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Contact:
Charlene Boyce, Communications
Green Party of Nova Scotia
media@greenpartyns.ca

October 04, 2016
(OTTAWA) – The McNeil government is rejecting climate change science by refusing to participate in talks with Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna. On Monday, Nova Scotia Environment Minister Margaret Miller ditched a meeting about the Trudeau government’s new carbon pricing scheme.

“Margaret Miller walking out of the climate talks shows that Nova Scotia Liberals are really climate change deniers,” said Thomas Trappenberg, Leader of the Green Party of Nova Scotia. “More than that, they even deny Nova Scotians a modern economy. Polluting our air for free and stating that clean energy is economically not viable is an affront and makes me wonder who is paying their bills.”

“By opting out of the dialogue meeting Minister Miller and her government have betrayed the young of Nova Scotia who will bare the brunt of climate change inaction,” said Richard Zurawski, the Green Party of Canada’s Climate Change Critic. “The science is clear. We must act now. Time has run out.”

“Ever since Premier McNeil stated that burning Cape Breton coal would be good for the environment because it is ‘local’, I have wondered ‎about the provincial Liberals grasp of the fundamentals of climate science,” said Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada (MP, Saanich-Gulf Islands). “The federal proposal will return any pollution fees back to Nova Scotia. The provincial government could direct those funds to assist low income Nova Scotians to save fuel costs by better insulating homes, or any number of a range of programmes. Walking out is not constructive.”

Nova Scotia is so far refusing to participate in a carbon pricing plan. On Monday, the Trudeau government announced the national plan, setting the carbon price at $10 per tonne in 2018 and increasing to $50 per tonne by 2022.

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For additional information, please contact:

Thomas Trappenberg
Leader | Chef
Green Party of Nova Scotia | Parti vert de la Nouvelle-Écosse
leader@greendpartyns.ca

Dan Palmer
Press Secretary | Attaché de presse
Green Party of Canada | Parti vert du Canada
dan.palmer@greenparty.ca
m: (613) 614-4916