The Conservative, NDP, and Liberal candidates for Hamilton Mountain exchanged jabs at each other in a heated debate last Tuesday that was broadcasted live on Cable 14.
The candidates who took part were former Haldimand County Mayor Ken Hewitt for the Conservatives, former Member of Provincial Parliament Monique Taylor for the NDP, and incumbent candidate Lisa Hepfner for the Liberals.
The debate consisted of opening remarks, a round of questions from media panellists from The Hamilton Spectator and CBC Hamilton, questions from the public, another round of media questions, a round table debate, and closing remarks.
Hepfner began the debate, arguing, “Opposition parties are going to tell you that nothing has been done [over the past 10 years that the Liberals have been in power.] That’s just because they want to stew up anger and division. Don’t believe them.”
Meanwhile, Hewitt addressed the fact that he lives in Haldimand head on, noting that he was “born and raised as a Hamilton Mountain boy.”
“Our family of five lived in a modest home on Crockett Street. My mother worked as a cashier at Safeway, and my father was an insulator who happened to insulate McMaster University Hospital,” he added.
“After university, I became a financial adviser to young families, retirees, and businesses, with offices in downtown Hamilton and Ancaster.”
He said that the Conservatives are for “real change” after “three terms of the NDP-Liberal coalition.”
Meanwhile, Taylor took a jab at Hepfner, informing residents that the incumbent Member of Parliament “chooses to live in Oakville instead of with the people that she has been paid to represent.”
Conversation then turned to crime.
Hewitt said, “After three terms of the NDP-Liberal coalition, the criminals are all over our streets and according to the Community Crime Index just here in the last four months on Hamilton Mountain, I’ll read these off, 36 car burglaries, 86 stolen cars, 13 home break-and-enters, 11 business break-and-enters, three business robberies, one murder, and one home invasion.”
“This is real crime where we live, and what do the Liberals do? They release repeat offenders, these criminals, out on bail just to do the same crimes again.”
Hewitt continued, “A Conservative government will keep criminals in jail, not bail. We will deport non-citizen criminals.”
After that line, Hepfner interjected, saying, “That’s scary talk.”
Taylor once again brought up the fact that Hepfner lives in Oakville, claiming that, as a result, she does not have the ability to serve the community in Hamilton “instantly.”
Hepfner responded to Taylor, saying, “It is disgusting, xenophobic, and classist to suggest that you have to have been born and raised in a community in order to represent people. Hamilton Mountain has one of the highest rates of immigration in the region. What are you saying to those people? They don’t belong because they weren’t born and raised in the community.”
Taylor replied that she had said no such thing and that Hepfner was putting words in her mouth.
Candidates also debated Canada’s economic position, particularly in the midst of American President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Hewitt said that Canada “is not in the economic situation that we’re in because of south of the border.”
“We’re in the economic situation because of our Liberal and NDP coalition government that has held us ransom for the last couple years. It is the policies that exist today that aren’t garnering the results.”
Meanwhile, Hepfner touted Liberal leader Mark Carney, saying, “This is a leader who is knowledgeable, smart, and calm, has experience in managing economies, and he’s a climate activist.”
Hamilton’s federal election results were not available in time for this issue of The Hamilton Independent, but will be covered in the Friday, May 2, edition.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
