Marit Stiles, Leader of the Official Opposition NDP and NDP MPPs Lise Vaugeois (Thunder Bay – Superior North) and Sol Mamakwa (Kiiwetinoong) demanded support and resources for forest fire workers during a press conference today addressing the severe and urgent crisis as wildfire season rages on amidst a retention and recruitment crisis. “Forest fire crews have been doing incredibly difficult ...

As Canadians start to take their summer vacation, Canada’s NDP is calling on Premier Ford and Prime Minister Trudeau to ensure electric vehicle (EV) chargers are available and reliable across Northern Ontario and Canada, as promised in the federal government’s Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Program. The call comes in response to reports of chargers across Northern Ontario, specifically Marathon, White ...

NDP MPP Catherine Fife (Waterloo) met with seniors who have experienced spousal separation in Ontario’s Long-Term Care system today, pushing to bring the Till Death Do Us Part Act back to Queen’s Park committee for discussion and debate. “It’s heartbreaking to hear the stories of older adult couples who are forced to live apart,” said Fife. “I invited all PC ...

Lundi, le NPD a renouvelé son appel au ministre des Finances pour qu’il prolonge la date limite de remboursement des prêts du Compte d’urgence pour les entreprises canadiennes (CUEC) car les petites entreprises qui ont compté sur ces prêts pendant la pandémie font face à une lente reprise en raison de la crise du coût de la vie. Les petites ...

On Monday, Canada’s NDP renewed their call to the Minister of Finance to extend the deadline for Canadian Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loans, as small businesses who relied on these loans during the pandemic have faced a slow recovery with the cost-of-living crisis. Small businesses have been struggling with supply chain issues, and the high costs of groceries, heating, rent ...

On Monday, NDP critic for Indigenous Services, Northern Affairs, MP Lori Idlout (Nunavut), once again urged the Public Safety minister to reinstate the funding for policing for 45 First Nations communities in Northern Ontario. The pressure comes in response to the Minister dragging his feet on negotiations with the Indigenous Police Chiefs of Ontario for a fair contract.  The government ...

On Tuesday, Canada’s NDP introduced Pharamacare legislation, outlining the New Democrats’ expectations of the government on the universal prescription medication program.  As part of the Confidence and Supply agreement, New Democrats are using their power to force the government to pass pharmacare legislation by the end of the year. Northern Ontario NDP MP’s Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay) and Carol Hughes ...

In the final Question Period of the legislative session (June 8, 2023), NDP MPP for Sudbury, Jamie West, called on the Ford Government to remove the cost-prohibitive barriers blocking Northern Ontarians from accessing proper care through the Northern Health Travel Grant. The current system places an undue burden on individuals who must travel long distances to receive specialized health care, ...

On Tuesday, NDP MP Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay) pushed the Liberals on their lack of action to address the growing housing crisis in the North. With support programs running out of funding, and hundreds of waitlists for homes, Angus is calling on the government to sit down with the various social services boards of the North and step up with ...

Jamie West (Sudbury), the NDP Critic for Labour, and Health Critic France Gélinas (Nickel Belt) issued the following statement in response to the government’s announcement today that underground Diesel Particulate Matter (DPM) in mines will be lowered from 400 to 120 mcg/mg. United Steelworkers (USW) has been asking Ford’s Conservatives to reduce this number to 20 mcg/g for years, as ...

NDP MPP Lise Vaugeois (Thunder Bay-Superior North) and strong advocate for safer roads in Northern Ontario, is once again urging the Ford government to take immediate action following another week of tragic accidents involving truckers in Northern Ontario. This week, a 47-year-old woman lost her life after a crash with a tanker on MR55 in the Greater Sudbury community. Vaugeois ...

Monique Taylor (Hamilton Mountain), NDP critic for Children, Community, and Social Services, is fighting to pass a bill that would create a new alert for missing vulnerable persons. “This bill is an important, common-sense way to fill a gap in our existing system,” said Taylor. “In an emergency situation, when a family is frantically looking for a vulnerable loved one, ...

NDP MPP Wayne Gates (Niagara Falls) has been a long-time champion of a solution to provide OHIP coverage for prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing for prostate cancer when referred by a healthcare provider. Today his important legislation failed to move forward after conservative members voted against it. “Frankly I’m disappointed, but not surprised—this has consistently been the tone of this ...

Ontario’s third quarter fiscal update shows that Ford is deliberately starving health care and education of critical resources. NDP Finance critic, MPP Catherine Fife (Waterloo), released the following statement: “Budgets are about priorities. It’s clear from today’s fiscal update that the government has the resources and ability to invest in Ontarians and is deliberately and callously choosing not to. Over ...

The Ontario Federal Electoral Boundary Commission has submitted their final report on electoral boundaries today to the House of Commons which reduces representation in Northern Ontario, according to Carol Hughes, MP for Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing, and Charlie Angus, MP for Timmins-James Bay. “With the final report, the number of ridings representing Northern Ontario are being reduced from ten to nine,” said Hughes. ...