What the east-end candidates have actually published
Thirteen people are asking for your vote across two by-elections three days apart. Six have published something you could fairly call a platform, and they are not much alike: one is eight sections and twenty-two commitments, one is four pillars in a party newsletter, one is two press releases with a Parliamentary Budget Officer citation in it. Below is what each of them says, at length, with the receipts — and then what the six have in common, which is the part that should worry you.
The finding, before the detail
We read all six against the same standard we used on 233 published Ontario municipal platforms in July: how specific a commitment is, whether it is grounded in money, whether it matches the powers the office actually holds, whether it reasons from evidence, whether it says how anything would be implemented, how much it engages the riding it is written for, and whether it hangs together.
The scarcest of the seven, here as in the municipal corpus, is implementation — the sequence, the timeline, the named partner, the first step. Across 233 municipal platforms, 21 per cent showed any costing at all, 16 per cent cited any evidence, and 2 per cent committed to a date for anything. Six platforms is far too few to put a number against that, but the shape recurs: these candidates are clear about what they want and much quieter about how, when, and what it costs. It is not a local failing and it is not a partisan one; it is what political platforms in Ontario currently are, at every level of government we have now measured.
What does vary here, and visibly, is how much of the work a campaign shows. Two of the six cite public data and link it. One names the constraint its own proposal runs into. One tests its commitments against the powers of the office in its opening line. One publishes a rule for how it would vote and a deadline for explaining itself. None of those are expensive things to do, which is the point.
Beaches—East York — electing an MP on August 31
Six people are on the ballot for Member of Parliament. Three of them have published something setting out what they would do in office. Elections Canada confirmed this field on August 12, so it is final.
Shannon Devine — New Democratic Party
Her campaign site's homepage carries a signed letter ending in a list of commitments.
Devine's commitments open with how she would use the job rather than what she would spend. The first is to speak without clearing it upward, which she puts in terms of party discipline: an NDP member, she writes, cannot be silenced by the government. The last is to take direction from constituents. In between are the policy commitments.
Climate is the letter's organising grievance. She frames the campaign around a federal government she says has dropped its climate commitment and gutted environmental protections, and ties it to this summer specifically. On energy she is categorical: firm opposition to new pipeline projects.
The local file she names is Billy Bishop Airport, where she commits to holding the government to its stated word rather than proposing a new policy. On affordability she lists rent and housing, groceries, prescriptions, jobs and child care as the things to fight for, without attaching a mechanism or a figure to any of them. On foreign policy she calls for diplomatic and economic solutions to end what she describes as Canada's complicity in the genocide in Palestine.
“Freely speaking out on federal decisions that impact Beaches—East York and Toronto. As an NDP candidate I can't (and won't) be silenced by a top-down Carney government.”
“Ensuring the Liberals keep their word on Billy Bishop Airport, instead of making more backroom deals with Doug Ford.”
“It turns out the Mark Carney government is more conservative than many actual Conservative governments, leaving many feeling betrayed while the cost of living soars.”
One thing a reader looking for more will want to know: the PLATFORM link in her site's menu goes to the ideas page of Avi Lewis's NDP leadership campaign, which carries its own notice that its policies do not necessarily represent current NDP or NDP caucus positions. We read the commitments on her own homepage as her platform for this by-election.
Bruce Livesey — Green Party of Canada
His priorities were published in the Green Party's announcement of his nomination; no separate campaign site was found.
Livesey's four stated priorities are all cost-of-living measures delivered through public or community ownership rather than through subsidies: free public transit, an expansion of social and co-operative housing aimed at pulling rents down, help for households and businesses cutting their energy bills, and support for community-owned, non-profit grocery stores.
Unusually for a platform of this length, he says where the money comes from. His stated funding source is a tax on oil and gas excess profits, with the revenue directed into public services — the pay-for and the spending named in the same breath.
The fifth commitment is a jobs argument attached to the energy transition: well-paying work in renewable energy and Canadian manufacturing as the country moves off fossil fuels. He grounds his claim on the riding in having driven a TTC bus through it before he was a journalist.
“People are paying too much for housing, transportation, food and energy while wealthy corporations report record profits.”
“Governments have the power to lower everyday costs by taxing the oil and gas industry's excess profits and investing that money in the public services people rely on.”
“When I worked for the TTC, I transported thousands of Beaches—East York residents to their homes, workplaces and local shops.”
Cameron Thomas — Canadian Future Party
Two campaign releases, on housing (August 6) and on how he would vote in Parliament (August 12). Three more are announced: health care, tax reform and public safety.
The housing release is built on riding-level numbers rather than national ones. It reports that 38.6 per cent of renter households in the area spend more than 30 per cent of their income on rent and utilities, that average rent is $1,370 a month, that nearly 13,000 residents live below the low-income threshold, and that 11.7 per cent of households are headed by someone aged 25 to 34 against 17.4 per cent citywide — with a note that the figures are for City ward 19, which closely but not exactly matches the riding.
Its argument is that federal housing money has not landed here. On August 5 the Prime Minister and the Mayor announced a $2.7-billion partnership covering 18 Toronto projects; the release notes that none of the 18 is in this riding, and that the riding's outgoing MP ran the federal housing department. The two asks that follow are that Build Canada Homes — which he describes as able to build directly on federal and city land without waiting for municipal approval — reach ridings not already in the pipeline, and that Parliament protect its budget, which he cites the Parliamentary Budget Officer as projecting will fall from $9.8 billion in 2025-26 to $4.3 billion in 2028-29.
The second ask is renewed CMHC investment in non-profit and co-op housing, faster access to public land for those builders, resale covenants to keep the units affordable long-term, and federal money for Toronto's programme for buying existing rental buildings before investors do. He notes the fund that finances this work is fully committed and closed to new applications.
The August 12 release is about the job rather than a policy area. He publishes a closed list of the votes he would treat as whipped — confidence matters and his party's platform commitments — and commits to free votes on everything else, plus publishing his reasoning within 48 hours whenever he votes against his own caucus's preference.
“I've spent seventeen years in the same submarket rental unit in this riding. Affordable housing isn't an abstraction to me, it's my address.”
“Figures reflect City of Toronto Ward 19, which closely aligns with, though is not identical to, the federal riding boundary.”
“Our own MP ran the federal housing department, and this riding still got nothing out of it.”
“Individual courage was never the missing ingredient. Structural change is.”
Where we looked and found no platform
As of August 15, 2026 we could not find a set of published commitments for the following candidates. This is a note about the public record on the day we read it, and nothing else — see the end of this page.
- Michel Lachance — People's Party of Canada. His candidate page on the national party site carries a biography and links to the party's national policy set. We found no commitments published for this riding. (the page we read)
- Tanveer Shahnawaz — Liberal Party of Canada. His campaign site carries a biography and a statement of direction — that he will work with the government to bring down costs, grow the local economy, keep the community safe and expand opportunity. We found no platform or priorities page setting out specific commitments. (the page we read)
- Jim Syrbos — Conservative Party of Canada. No campaign website is listed on his Elections Canada entry and we found none. The riding association page carries no candidate content. (the page we read)
Scarborough Southwest — electing an MPP on September 3
Seven people are on the ballot for Member of Provincial Parliament. Three of them have published something setting out what they would do in office. Provincial nominations close August 20 at 2 p.m. and Elections Ontario publishes the official list only after that, so this field can still grow. We will read whatever arrives.
Ahsanul Hafiz — Ontario Liberal Party
His campaign site lists seven priorities under the heading "Priorities Shaped by Experience", each a title and a sentence.
The seven are affordability, youth unemployment, education, health care, community safety, integrity in public service, and neighbourhood life. Each is stated as an aim rather than as a measure: expanding access to public health care and reducing wait times, strong and accessible schools, safer neighbourhoods through investment and community programs.
The one that names a specific problem rather than a policy area is youth unemployment, which he frames around the first job in particular — the entry point rather than the overall rate. It connects to the biography the site leads with: arriving as an international student, delivering pizzas while studying, and now operating 30 Domino's franchises across Ontario.
The site publishes in English, Bengali, Tamil, Chinese, Hindi and Tagalog, in a riding where roughly 46 per cent of residents are immigrants and about 61 per cent are members of visible minorities.
“Fix Youth Unemployment — Ensuring young people can get that critical first job that builds responsibility and opportunity.”
“Healthcare — Expanding access to quality public healthcare and reducing wait times.”
“A Stronger Scarborough. A Fairer Ontario.”
A reader checking the site should know it was still carrying the date of the May nomination meeting in its get-involved section when we read it, rather than the September 3 by-election.
Chris Rees — New Blue Party of Ontario
His four campaign pillars were published in his party's candidate announcement; no separate campaign site was found.
Two of the four pillars are fiscal and name specific instruments: a cut to the HST, and elimination of what the announcement calls Doug Ford's industrial carbon tax. Both are framed as things he would advocate for rather than deliver, which is the accurate description of what one member outside government can do about a tax.
The other two are social. He would oppose diversity, equity and inclusion policy in the public sector, and protect students from what the announcement calls radical school curricula. A fourth commits him to challenging what it describes as the dangerous implications of medical assistance in dying — a framework set in federal criminal law, with the province regulating how the service is delivered.
The announcement introduces him as a chartered professional accountant with 32 years in teaching, business and accounting, an economics degree from Guelph, and roots in Northern Ontario and Toronto.
“advocating for a cut to the HST and elimination of Doug Ford's industrial carbon tax”
“Chris is dedicated to making life better for Scarborough Southwest taxpayers.”
Fatima Shaban — Ontario NDP
A plan of eight sections and roughly 22 commitments, published on her campaign site as "Our Plan for Scarborough Southwest".
The plan opens by stating a test it then applies to itself — that every item is something an MPP can actually move at Queen's Park — and by sourcing its contents to named neighbourhoods: Birch Cliff, Cliffside, Cliffcrest, Oakridge, Kennedy Park, Scarborough Village and Kingston Road.
Health care leads. It commits to funding 40 staffed acute care beds at Scarborough Health Network, which it notes serves close to a million people across the Birchmount, General and Centenary sites, and to legislated nurse-to-patient ratios — pointing at Bill 192, which would have set them, was voted down, and returns for a vote this fall. A third commitment is clearing the path for internationally trained doctors and nurses.
On cost of living: removing the tax from food, banning what it calls surveillance pricing that varies by your phone or postal code, and banning the restrictive covenants that stop a competing grocer opening nearby — citing Manitoba as the first province to void them. Housing is two commitments: rent control on every unit, closing the exemption for units first occupied after November 15, 2018 and tying rent to the unit rather than the tenant, and cutting Landlord and Tenant Board delays through full-time adjudicators, restored in-person hearings and binding service standards.
Transit is the Scarborough East LRT — 18.6 kilometres, Kennedy Station to Malvern, 27 stops, described as the City's top unfunded transit priority — plus restoring 50/50 provincial-municipal operating cost sharing, and more frequent bus service on Kingston Road, Danforth, Warden and Victoria Park, which it notes needs no new tunnel.
Education covers reversing cuts, OSAP changes that took effect August 1, a $16-billion school repair backlog to be worked through in order of building condition rather than by which riding a school sits in, smaller classes, and a funding formula rewritten in public. Public safety covers required anti-theft technology on cars sold in Ontario, an audited VIN registry with interprovincial data sharing, driver testing returned to the Ministry of Transportation, and a funded response to school violence. A separate section proposes a moratorium on new large AI data centres until rules exist, including protection against their infrastructure costs landing on household bills. Climate commits to legislated net-zero by 2050 and an adaptation plan that names the Bluffs and aging storm infrastructure.
“Every item here is something an MPP can actually move at Queen's Park.”
“Bill 192 would have legislated those ratios. Progressive Conservative MPPs voted it down. It comes back for a vote this fall, and Scarborough Southwest deserves an MPP who will be there to vote for it.”
“Manitoba became the first province to void these controls and ban new ones. Ontario should be next, so that a new grocer can open where people actually need one and prices have to compete.”
“Scarborough's bluffs and its aging storm infrastructure make this local, immediate and expensive to keep ignoring.”
Where we looked and found no platform
As of August 15, 2026 we could not find a set of published commitments for the following candidates. This is a note about the public record on the day we read it, and nothing else — see the end of this page.
- Mark Bekkering — Green Party of Ontario. His party riding page carries a biography and a statement of values. His announcement quote names affordable homes, better transit and a sustainable future as what the community needs from a government. We found no set of commitments published for this by-election. (the page we read)
- Gord Elliott — Ontario Party. We could not locate a campaign site, biography or platform. If Elections Ontario's official list carries contact details after nominations close on August 20, we will look again.
- Michael Perdelwitz — Independent (as reported). His registration was reported locally in August. We could not locate a campaign site, biography or platform, and his ballot designation will be settled by the official list after nominations close.
- Noor Tarun — Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. His campaign page carries party news items. His nomination release quotes him on growing the economy, lowering costs and community safety, and lists the party's record and existing government commitments for the area — the subway extension, the Ontario Line, added GO service, a $1-billion Scarborough Health Network expansion, the gas tax cut and One Fare. We found no set of commitments published under his own name for this by-election. (the page we read)
Where the published platforms land, issue by issue
Six platforms across two ballots and two orders of government. What each says on the subjects that recur — described, not compared.
Housing and rent
Every published platform in both races raises it, and they diverge on the lever. In the federal race Thomas works entirely through federal money and federal land — Build Canada Homes, CMHC, resale covenants, and federal support for the City's programme of buying rental buildings before investors do. Livesey goes to ownership, expanding social and co-operative housing to pull rents down. Devine lists affordable rent and housing among the things to fight for without naming an instrument. In the provincial race, where the lever actually sits, Shaban proposes rent control on every unit with the 2018 exemption closed and rent tied to the unit rather than the tenant, plus faster Landlord and Tenant Board hearings. Hafiz's seven priorities do not include housing as a heading; Rees's four do not either.
The cost of everything else
Groceries recur across parties and both ballots. Livesey proposes community-owned non-profit grocery stores; Shaban proposes removing the tax from food, banning pricing that varies by your phone or postal code, and banning the covenants that block a competing store opening nearby; Devine lists groceries and prescriptions among costs to bring down. Rees approaches the same problem from the tax side, advocating an HST cut. Hafiz names affordability first among his seven priorities.
Climate and energy
The sharpest divergence in either race. Devine commits to firm opposition to new pipeline projects and to restoring environmental protections she says have been gutted. Livesey would tax oil and gas excess profits to fund public services and build renewable and manufacturing jobs as the country moves off fossil fuels. Shaban would legislate net-zero by 2050 with an adaptation plan naming the Bluffs and storm infrastructure, and would pause new large data centres partly over their effect on household electricity bills. Rees would eliminate the province's industrial carbon pricing. Thomas's published planks do not reach the subject, though his party's housing platform mentions climate-ready construction.
Health care and schools — the provincial ballot
Shaban commits to 40 staffed acute care beds at Scarborough Health Network, legislated nurse-to-patient ratios via a bill returning this fall, faster credential recognition for internationally trained doctors, and on education, reversed cuts, OSAP, a $16-billion repair backlog and a funding formula rewritten in public. Hafiz names health care and education as two of his seven priorities, committing to expanded access and shorter waits, and to strong and accessible schools. Rees's education pillar is about curriculum content rather than funding.
How the job itself would be done
Two candidates make this a plank rather than a footnote, from opposite directions. Devine commits to speaking without being whipped by her own party's leadership. Thomas publishes a closed list of the votes he would treat as whipped and commits to explaining any vote against his caucus within 48 hours. Shaban's version is the inverse — a commitment to be present for a specific vote on a specific bill this fall. Hafiz's seventh priority, leading with integrity, is stated as a manner of service rather than a procedure.
What we are not saying
This page does not endorse any candidate or party, and it does not rank anyone. There is no scoreboard and there will not be one. Every candidate was read the same way, from their own published words. “No published platform” is not a criticism — by-elections are short, campaigns publish on their own schedule, some publish after the debates, and one campaign here has three more releases announced. A candidate without a published platform may well be the most prepared person in the race; we can only tell you what was on the public record on August 15, 2026, and we will re-read all of them. A longer platform is not automatically a better one — campaigns that publish more give us more to quote, which is a fact about the text. We are not a registered third party under the Canada Elections Act or Ontario’s Election Finances Act, and no money has been spent promoting this page or any candidate; it is published as commentary and research, which both statutes distinguish from election advertising.
How we read them, and how to check us
The standard was built in July to read 233 municipal platforms, and adapted here for federal and provincial offices — mostly to fix the one question that changes with the office: whether a promise matches the powers the job actually has. An MP and an MPP control very different things, and a housing promise squarely inside one office’s remit can sit outside the other’s. That adaptation is written down and public.
Two readers scored all six independently, without seeing each other’s work. They agreed exactly on 69 per cent of judgements and were within one point on the rest, with no disagreement wider than that. The second reader also found six real faults in the standard itself, which are written up and fixed for the next reading. We publish that because a reading you cannot check is worth very little.
Every platform quoted above was read at the campaign’s own page or release, linked beside each quote, so you can check any line here against its source. If we have something wrong, or a campaign publishes after today, tell us through the Harvest and this page gets corrected.