New Democrats have a new leader

WOODSTOCK – “I want us to be one of the richest places in the entire world.”

That was Dominic Cardy in Woodstock prior to his succession as the new leader of the NDP in New Brunswick. His vision for the future of the province is bright, and Cardy said he has creative ideas to stimulate growth.

“We want to encourage good businesses, so we’ll push for the New Jobs Tax Credit.”

This idea gives businesses a fully refundable tax credit for new jobs.

Cardy also believes literacy is one of the biggest problems that New Brunswickers face and is the single most important thing he would change.

“Politicians here have been happy to sit and preside over a province where we have an illiteracy rate that’s more than 50%,” said Cardy.

“I don’t think that you can expect people who don’t have the ability to read and write, to be able to compete with well organized interests no matter what they are.”

Cardy enters the leadership role following Roger Duguay, who resigned after the NDP failed to win a single seat in the last provincial election. The party only earned 10% of the vote, a percentage the party rarely improves.

Cardy has worked overseas for many years for political organizations in countries like Afghanistan and Cambodia. He writes for Inroads, the Canadian policy journal, and has been involved with the NDP since his time as President of the Nova Scotia NDP Youth Wing. He holds a degree in political science from Dalhousie University.