Article content

With the federal election looming, talk has turned to what the parties and their leaders have to say about the issues that are important to Canadians. The frustrating part is that the list of issues, which both the media and the politicians seem to have implicitly agreed upon, is incomplete. It touches on important stuff – the economy, the environment, day care. It also includes slightly more peripheral matters, such as mail delivery. But it’s missing at least four major subject areas that have a direct impact on Canadians’ lives.

What’s troubling about this is that if something isn’t considered an election issue, it’s easy for the powers that be to ignore it. Not that having government stay out of a problem is a bad thing, but when the problem itself is generated by government overreach, one of the only ways to fix it is to have policymakers address it. Because the last thing politicians want to do is discuss matters that have the potential alienate huge swathes of voters, however, many pressing questions get ignored. Here are some of the “elephants in the room” — obvious points that Canadians need addressed but aren’t hearing about from those running for office in the fall.