When I was just a young lad back home, there was a lovely lady who lived down the street from my family.  She was always bright and cheerful.  My brothers and I used to say she was old, but looking back, she was likely younger than I am now. But, as they say, it is all in the eye of ...

I have said many times that one of the greatest joys in my job as an MPP is the many opportunities I have each year to visit students in their elementary and secondary classrooms. Kids’ questions are far more challenging than most news reporters are because you never know what is coming at you.  Moreover, kids have no agenda to ...

J’ai dit à maintes reprises que l’une des plus grandes joies de mon travail en tant que député provincial réside dans les nombreuses occasions que j’ai chaque année de rendre visite aux élèves dans leurs salles de classes. Les questions des enfants sont beaucoup plus difficiles que celles de la plupart des journalistes, car je ne sais jamais ce qu’ils ...

MPP Michael Mantha called on Doug Ford to stop ignoring the opioid crisis in Northern Ontario and declare a public health emergency to stem the increasing number of hospitalizations and deaths in Algoma-Manitoulin. Mantha told the legislature that last week seven white crosses went up in M’Chigeeng First Nation. Each cross representing a community member who lost their life. Since ...

MPP Michael Mantha (Algoma-Manitoulin) demanded that Doug Ford put an end to a dangerous backlog that is risking the safety of northerners. Volunteer firefighters that northern communities depend on cannot currently get their licences because the government is not providing necessary drive test locations in Northern Ontario. Mantha received a letter from the Municipality of Central Manitoulin explaining that they ...

It is common and the norm for politicians to receive large quantities of phone calls, letters, and emails about particular issues in the headlines.  Those who read this column last week will understand why I think this is a good thing.  Readers will recall that my staff and I see this as a means of keeping our fingers on the ...

Il est courant et normal que les politiciens reçoivent de grandes quantités d’appels téléphoniques, des lettres et courriels sur des problèmes particuliers qui apparaissent dans les journaux. Ceux qui ont lu cette chronique la semaine dernière comprendront pourquoi je pense que c’est une bonne chose. Les lecteurs se souviendront que mon personnel et moi voyons cela comme un moyen de ...

À l’époque où je n’étais qu’un jeune homme, c’est-à-dire il y a plus longtemps que je ne voudrais l’admettre, je me souviens d’avoir appris l’une de ces « leçons de vie que nous expérimentons tous ». Ce fut une leçon très courte, mais que je n’oublierai jamais. Des années avant d’envisager une carrière en politique, j’ai visité une exposition locale, je me ...

Back when I was just a young man, which is longer ago than I’d like to admit, I remember learning one of those ‘life lessons that all of us experience. It was a very short lesson, but one I will never forget. Years before I ever contemplated a career in politics, I was enjoying a local trade show, walking around ...

The other day we had one of our weekly office staff team meetings to discuss casework, issues and trends in calls and letters to my offices.  One team member pointed out that monitoring the email account is like a medical professional monitoring someone’s blood pressure over an extended period of time.  Looking over the patient’s readings and taking note of ...

L’autre jour, nous avons eu l’une de nos réunions hebdomadaires du personnel de bureau pour discuter des dossiers, des problèmes et sujets des appels et des lettres à mon bureau. Un membre de l’équipe a souligné que la surveillance du compte de messagerie est comme un professionnel de la santé surveillant la tension artérielle d’une personne sur une période de ...

MPP Michael Mantha is pleased to announce that he is once again hosting constituency clinics across the riding between November 8th – 12th.  Constituents who have questions or matters of concern are invited to meet with him individually.  Social distancing protocols in effect and mask-wearing is required.  Meetings are by appointment only.  Contact the Constituency Office listed below for further ...

We’ve all heard the saying that it never rains, but it pours. We all know that in life, sometimes things go wrong. Unfortunately, at the moment, it appears that such is the case for Ontario’s health care system. Long before the onset of the pandemic and all of the issues that came in tow with it, Ontario health care officials ...

Nous savons tous que dans la vie, parfois les choses tournent mal. Malheureusement, à l’heure actuelle, il semble que tel soit le cas pour le système de santé de l’Ontario. Bien avant le début de la pandémie et tous les problèmes qui l’ont accompagnée, les responsables des soins de santé de l’Ontario ont tiré la sonnette d’alarme. Ils essayaient désespérément ...

It is true that many people do not like to be labelled or categorized by any means.   But let’s be honest, all of us innocently do it to some degree. The recent constituency clinics that I hosted in various communities in the riding, were extremely well attended, thus confirming how important it is for people to have access to their ...