HALIFAX — Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston fired the first salvo of the early election he called Sunday, saying he needed a strong mandate to help the province “stand its ground” to the federal government.

Voters in the Maritimes province will go to the polls on November 26, several months before the province’s fixed election date of July 15, 2025.

“Nova Scotia needs a government with a new mandate to defend our province,” Houston told supporters at a rally at a pub in the Halifax suburb of Bedford. “Otherwise, our province risks becoming a political football in a federal election that could take place simultaneously with the currently scheduled fixed-date elections. This is not in the best interest of Nova Scotia.

In the months before the election was called, Houston increasingly complained about the burden Ottawa’s carbon pricing model was placing on Nova Scotians at the gas pump. Ottawa’s refusal to pay the full cost of costly work needed to protect the Chignecto Isthmus, the low-lying land link between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, which is increasingly subject to severe flooding, is also high on the Prime Minister’s list of grievances.

Houston intensified its criticism of the disagreement on the isthmus on Sunday.

“The Trudeau government refuses to assume its responsibilities. In fact, he’s trying to rip us off…and he’s willing to rip us off even if it means cutting us off from the rest of Canada,” he said.

Houston also attacked the provincial Liberals, attempting to tie them to federal policies – a tactic he had already employed several times during a short 10-day session of the legislature in September.

Meanwhile, the premier said his Progressive Conservative government is also seeking a new mandate because it plans significant spending to address the province’s housing shortage and high cost of living.

“It is right to reach out to the people for their support and guidance on the way forward,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Houston paid a brief visit to the province’s lieutenant governor. Arthur LeBlanc at his official residence in downtown Halifax to dissolve the Legislative Assembly ahead of the 31-day campaign. He walked out and didn’t speak to the assembled reporters, preferring to quickly hop onto a large, bright blue campaign bus emblazoned with his image on the side and the words “Make it Happen.”

The province’s two opposition leaders criticized the early call, which they said violated the premier’s promise to stick to a fixed election date.

“This is a pointless election that is going to cost Nova Scotians $13 million for no good reason,” Liberal Leader Zach Churchill said in an interview. “Tim Houston is doing this for what is perceived to be his own self-interest.”

Churchill, who is entering his first election as leader of his party, said the government’s record would be one of the objectives of the election campaigns.

“He can’t rely on his own record,” he said of Houston. “More and more people have never had a family doctor, life is more expensive than ever and more and more people cannot afford to pay rent or buy a house. »

NDP Leader Claudia Chender, who is also leading her party into an election for the first time, said in an interview that the government is vulnerable on several fronts, but especially when it comes to its promise to “fix” the system of health of the province. .

“They haven’t been able to get people off the waiting list for family medicine…it’s (the number) double now what it was when Tim Houston took office. Emergency rooms are still crowded and many are more closed than open.

The Conservatives are seeking a second consecutive mandate from Nova Scotia voters after sweeping the Liberals from power in August 2021 – a victory that is the result of a near single-minded focus on the need to tackle to the province’s struggling health care system. .

The provincial Need A Family Practice registry, considered an important indicator of health system performance, was updated earlier this month for the first time since June, when it reached a record 160,234 people without a doctor.

New figures indicate a marked improvement, with 145,114 people on the register.

The numbers are still much higher than in summer 2022, when there were just over 100,000 people on the list. However, people on the waiting list for a family doctor have full access to virtual care through the Maple platform, after the government made a concerted effort to expand this option.

Conservatives defended their health record by highlighting community clinics and collaborative practices that gave residents better access to care. Additionally, they said that since 2021, they have strengthened emergency medical care by adding more health personnel and resources to the system.

As of September, Nova Scotia had added approximately 300 doctors to the provincial health system since September 2021, according to the provincial health department.

At the time of the dissolution, the Progressive Conservatives held 34 seats of the 55 seats in the Legislative Assembly. The Liberals held 14 seats, the NDP six and one independent.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published October 27, 2024.

Keith Doucette and Lyndsay Armstrong, The Canadian Press