As a second-time Green Party of Canada candidate, Amanda Rosenstock said she’s better equipped to tackle the key issues facing her community this time around.
Rosenstock previously ran as a federal Green candidate in Toronto during the 2021 election and said the experience “solidified” for her as something she wanted to pursue.
Since 2022, Rosenstock has worked for the federal government and is currently on leave from her role as a policy analyst for Transport Canada’s new high-speed rail network.
Rosenstock said her experience in policy analysis will help her provide feedback on strategies that will benefit people in her community.
She was nominated to represent Ottawa Centre at the beginning of March after beating out Algonquin College professor Andy Nita’s nomination bid.
The Charlatan met with Rosenstock to discuss her campaign proposals on public transit, affordable housing,health care, the economy and climate change.
Transit
Rosenstock said one of her top priorities is to reform how the federal government funds public transit.
Although she supports the $180 million federal pledge to OC Transpo in January, Rosenstock said it’s a “drop in the bucket” and “not the type” of financing Ottawa’s transit system needs.
Rosenstock said she would require municipalities to have a more robust strategy on how they would increase ridership year-over-year to avoid changes like fare hikes and service reductions.
“We need to ensure that when we’re providing funding to municipalities, they are accountable for their decisions,” she said.
She added OC Transpo needs more funding to bolster operation costs, hire additional drivers and transition away from its aging diesel bus fleet.
“I know this is one of the key issues for Carleton students as well,” she said of the system’s unreliability.
Health care and housing
Rosenstock said forgiving all federal student loans will keep nurses and doctors practising in Ottawa and ease the financial burden of buying a house.
“We should expand student loan forgiveness on the basis of local needs,” she said.
Rosenstock said she would immediately amend the current loan forgiveness eligibility to be based on patient-to-doctor ratios. Right now, practitioners only qualify if they serve rural areas with a population of 30,000 people or less.
This loan forgiveness would also apply to students and young professionals who are struggling to purchase homes and find affordable rentals, she said.
“I know the cost of housing is way too high,” she added. “I can only imagine how strained students must feel.”
Canada’s Green Party has a plan to strengthen housing regulations by restricting corporations from buying family homes and keeping rent and mortgage rates payable at 30 per cent of a person’s regular income.
Economy
Rosenstock said Canada needs to invest more in technology to increase its waning productivity.
This echoes the Green Party’s promise to prioritize clean energy projects, increase job opportunities and end subsidies for oil and gas companies.
She added this would incentivize businesses and workers to adopt new innovations.
“Why don’t we take that bold step and support students, innovation and entrepreneurship?” she said.
Rosenstock also stressed that forgiving student loans and improving public transit could encourage workers to enter the workforce with more confidence and connect local markets.
Climate change
Rosenstock said she will prioritize solutions to climate change despite economic concerns stealing the spotlight this federal election.
For Ottawa, she said it must start by getting cars off the road and pushing for electric alternatives in lieu of fossil fuels.
“Climate change is here to stay and we can’t reverse it, but we can slow it,” she said. “We absolutely want to end our subsidies to oil and gas, both direct and indirect.”
Rosensock said the money from subsidies would be reallocated to fund public services like post-secondary institutions and transit infrastructure.
The Green Party of Canada promises to cut Canada’s emissions by ending new fossil fuel projects and tackling climate change with science-backed solutions.
For more information, visit Rosenstock’s campaign page.
Featured image by Simon McKeown.
