Op-Ed: From the Arts To Afghanstan The Canadian Issues That Will Steer This Election

What are the major issues that will decide who will reside at 24 Sussex Avenue? Which issues mean the most to you? Which issues are missing from the table?

The following issues will all play a factor in the upcoming Canadian election. As the week goes on more detailed reports will follow on each of the issues. This is an overview of what will decide the election on October 14. Economy, Trade & Finance From the Alberta Oil Sands to the state of the United States financial crisis this is a huge issue for Canadian politics. World economic issues will be a guiding force on those in Canada. The need for Canada to become more self sustaining energy wise and at the same time be able to keep the environment in check are also concerns of the Canadian people. The small business man of Canada is also a concern. Farmers are scraping by. Housing costs are rising. These issues have to be addressed as well as those of big business. Health, Education & Social Welfare More and more Canadians are finding themselves without a family doctor. Many are also concerned about the waiting times that they have to deal with when presented with an illness. Finding child care that is within a family's budget is always a concern. School violence and funding will be questions raised to the parties as well. French Immersion is another hot topic for some with cuts in many provinces for that program. Immigrant issues are another hot topic. Bringing in enough qualified professionals to deal with the medical field and others has been tossed about this year. Allowing immigrants to work in their fields instead of having to do menial labour is another issue. Military & Security The peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan is a key issue. As the death toll to Canadian troops presses close to 100 many are questioning if Canada should leave that hot zone or if they need to continue helping. National security risks are on many people's minds. Making sure that Canadians are safe at home and aboard have some voters wondering where their party stands. Society, Culture & Communities The Arts have taken some serious hits in the past year with funding. Those hits have angered many. City infrastructure is a huge topic. As cities struggle to pay for needed improvements they look to the federal government for help. Transportation issues in Toronto alone have many wondering where the funding for the next wave of the future will come from, their pockets or other sources. Each of these issues are important to the people of Canada. They will all be looked at in depth. This week's series of articles will help prepare voters to know what will be on the debate table next week as the candidates take to the stage. Which issues most interest you? Are there issues that you believe are getting too much focus on instead of the ones that matter? As you may have noticed there are no links in this article. There's a reason, the issues are well known and have not been delved into as of yet. Each article that follows this one in the series will be filled with links however.