Premier Susan Holt and her government just reached the midway point of their mandate. If you want to know how well they are keeping their election promises, a new tracking tool has the answers.

Gabriel Arsenault is a political science professor at the Université de Moncton. He oversees the Holt Polimeter. This tool assesses the government record on 77 campaign pledges. According to a recent report from CBC News, the tracker shows the government broke two promises so far.

Tracking the Promises

Arsenault and his team at the Donald J. Savoie Institute analyzed the Liberal Party campaign. They determined Holt made 77 pledges to voters. The team found the government fulfilled 27 pledges and partially fulfilled four. Another 21 remain ongoing and 23 remain unaddressed.

The two broken promises involve finances. The government failed to balance the budget each year. They also failed to immediately eliminate the cost of the carbon adjuster, known as the Higgs gas tax.

Arsenault believes tracking these promises helps ordinary citizens stay informed. He notes that parties make many pledges during campaigns and voters expect leaders to honor them.

“We justify our verdict,” Arsenault said. “People could disagree with us and that is fine. The important thing for us is to be transparent, and non partisan, as objective as possible.”

How Holt Compares

Arsenault looks at other governments to determine a good success rate. He considers 60 percent of pledges partially fulfilled as the magic number. He says the Holt government is doing fairly well and better than most.

For comparison, former Premier Blaine Higgs fulfilled 25 pledges, partially fulfilled 18, and broke 26 during his first term. In his second term, Higgs fulfilled 20 pledges, partially fulfilled four, and broke 10.

Arsenault points out that governments break pledges for various reasons. Economic crises, pandemics, or simply being new to power all play a role.

Opposition Demands Action

Margaret Johnson leads the Official Opposition. She remains unimpressed with the Holt government record. She criticized their lack of action on healthcare, the economy, affordability, and education.

Johnson says the government does an admirable job of making announcements but fails to deliver results on healthcare.

“We are not seeing people being taken on,” Johnson said. “We are not seeing the clinics opening. We are not seeing New Brunswickers getting immediate service. It has been two years. Let us get on the ball. Let us start making things happen.”

Government Defends Record

David Hickey is the minister responsible for the New Brunswick Housing Corporation. He says some promises are harder to keep than others. He believes the Liberals are doing a good job overall.

Hickey claims the government completed 36 platform commitments with the rest in progress. He feels especially proud of their progress on housing.

“I will put up our record on housing any day over the PCs because we have delivered clear results,” Hickey said.

When asked about the broken budget promise, Hickey said the government will continue to build a solid foundation and deliver results.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Holt Polimeter?

The Holt Polimeter is a tracking tool managed by researchers at the Université de Moncton. It monitors the progress of the 77 campaign promises made by Premier Susan Holt and her government.

Which promises did the Holt government break?

The tracker identifies two broken promises. The government failed to balance the budget each year and did not immediately eliminate the cost of the carbon adjuster.

How many promises has the government kept?

The tracker shows the government fulfilled 27 pledges and partially fulfilled four. Another 21 are ongoing.

What does the opposition say about the government record?

Official Opposition Leader Margaret Johnson criticizes the government for making announcements without delivering real results, particularly in healthcare.