Interview with The Honourable Stéphane Dion

But, to speak to your question, I woud like to see us move towards some form of proportional representation, but also preferential voting because it promotes cooperation among candidates and parties. So parties would have to convince voters who support other parties that they are a good, alternative choice, and this would encourage parties to highlight similarities in their platforms, and to cooperate after elections. 

For example, it is well known that – while I believe our party is better than theirs – I have great respect and admiration for the Green Party leader, Elizabeth May. Under preferential voting, we would each try to attract as many first and second choice votes as possible, and you would do that in part by persuading the other candidate's supporters that you are an acceptable second choice; that you share similar values.

And I think that would be one way to improve voter turnout, not only among youth, but all Canadians, because of the cooperation we would see between parties, and because people would feel like their vote counts more (than under our current system).

MH: Do you think that some of the nastiness we see in politics, and some of the personal attacks we see in the House of Commons, discourage young people from voting?

SD: Yes, we've seen that with some of the attack ads that the Conservatives have used against myself and others, and that may discourage some people from voting.

But again, I get back to the issue of citizens perceiving voting as their duty. It was only a few generations ago that Canadians were taught by their parents and grandparents, by labour unions and other organizations, that voting was their duty and they had a responsibility to vote.

And that's why I'm so supportive of the educational work that Elections Canada and other organizations are doing. They are trying to educate citizens about the importance of voting, and are encouraging Canadians to participate in the electoral process, which is crucial.

MH: You're one of the leading authorities on the environment and climate change in Parliament.

What are your thoughts on the approach that the Harper Government has taken toward addressing climate change?

SD: It is terrible, it really is. And if we continue on our current path, we are looking at a 3 to 4 degree increase in the global average temperature, which would be catastrophic for the planet. I think the reason why we are seeing so little action action from this government, on the issue of climate change, is because Prime Minister Harper is skeptical of climate change and the science behind it. I remember, even after Stephen Harper became Prime Minister, he would refer to "so called" greenhouse gases in some of his speeches. Well, they are not "so called," they are real.