Editorials, Letters & Political Commentary

Thunder Bay – Superior North MPP Lise Vaugeois joins her NDP colleagues in the Ontario legislature in decrying Doug Ford’s move to privatize 50 per cent of the province’s health care system by moving patients to private, for-profit clinics. This move will result in a decline in the quality of care as for-profit enterprises poach health care workers from the ...

The Government of Ontario may have finally taken its first real tangible step forward to make passenger rail service in the northeast a reality.   The Associate Minister of Transportation, Stan Cho, and his ministerial colleagues — Victor Fedeli (MPP for Nipissing), George Pirie (Timmins) and Graydon Smith (Parry Sound-Muskoka) — were among those who announced an investment of $139.5 ...

In the wake of a tragedy in London, Peggy Sattler (London West), Terence Kernaghan (London North Centre), and Teresa Armstrong (London-Fanshawe) sent a letter to Doug Ford, urging him to commit to a provincial plan to address homelessness in London and across Ontario.   Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario Legislative Building, Queen’s Park Toronto ON M7A 1A1 January 11, 2023 ...

While in town as part of the government’s 2023 pre-budget consultations, Ontario NDP Finance critic Catherine Fife (Waterloo), Economic Development critic Terence Kernaghan (London North Centre), and deputy leader Sol Mamakwa ( Kiiwentinoong) held a press conference on January 9th, 2023 calling on the Ford government to implement better winter maintenance standards for Highways 11 and 17. “Northern Ontarians are ...

Sudbury MPP Jamie West, the NDP critic for Labour, issued the following statement in response to a campaign from Sudbury mine workers to reduce workers’ exposure to dangerous levels of Diesel Particulate Matter (DPM): “Ontarians are indebted to the miners who wake up every day and go to work in challenging environments. Our mining industry provides the raw materials, minerals ...

The Official Opposition NDP’s Interim Leader Peter Tabuns and Health critic France Gélinas say Doug Ford should be in the legislature taking action to fix the health care crisis, not packing it in until February while respiratory season rages. According to Ontario’s air ambulance and medical transport service, Ornge, it’s seen a sharp rise in the number of transportations of ...

Lise Vaugeois, NDP MPP for Thunder Bay-Superior North, is demanding answers after Ford broke his promise to Thunder Bay’s Alstom workers that anything bought in Ontario should be produced in Ontario. The Ontario NDP had previously called on Ford to ensure Ontario Line subway cars would be built in Thunder Bay, after Ford secretly lowered the Canadian content rules for ...

Récemment, je me suis retrouvé chez un concessionnaire automobile en attendant que mes pneus soient changés sur mon véhicule. Étant donné mes allers-retours constants entre Queen’s Park et mon bureau de circonscription à Elliot Lake, j’étais chanceux de ne pas avoir rencontré de difficultés sur la route. J’étais en retard changer mes pneus . Alors que j’étais dans la salle ...

Recently I found myself at a car dealership waiting to have my snow tires put on my vehicle. Admittedly, I was very late and fortunate not to have run into difficulties on the road, given my constant trekking back and forth between Queen’s Park and my constituency office in Elliot Lake. I know better. As I sat in the waiting ...

A new report from Feed Ontario shows that there is a 64 per cent increase in first-time visitors to food banks in the province and a 47 per cent increase in people with employment accessing food banks. Meanwhile, the country’s largest grocer – Loblaws – made huge profits this year, $556 million in their third quarter, up from $431 million. ...

Lise Vaugeois, NDP MPP for Thunder Bay–Superior North, is calling on Doug Ford to put a stop to gas price gouging that leaves Northerners paying more at the pumps. “Gas prices remain far higher in Northern Ontario than in the South,” Vaugeois said during question period Thursday. “In the Northwest, the average cost of gas was 30 cents more per ...

Friday’s announcement from the Ministry of Transportation is a long overdue step but fails to get to the root of safety concerns on Northern highways. “As the Official Opposition, we have had to push the government every step of the way towards getting strong safety standards on Highways 11 and 17,” said Algoma-Manitoulin MPP Michael Mantha. “Now the government has ...

NDP MPP Guy Bourgouin (Mushkegowuk—James Bay) issued this statement in response to the government’s announcement on new snow clearance standards for Highways 11 and 17: “The government’s announcement of a new standard for snow clearance on Highways 11 and 17 is a step in the right direction, but this change does not go far enough to ensure strong road safety ...

Quand j’étais à l’école secondaire, je me souviens que nos enseignants mettaient en place des affiches pour promouvoir une atmosphère positive. Certains étaient pleins d’humour, et d’autres étaient des paroles de sagesse. Cependant, il y en a une qui s’est toujours démarquée. Elle disait : « L’occasion ne frappe qu’une seule fois, mais la tentation continue de menacer à la porte. » J’ai ...

When I was in high school, I remember our teachers would put posters up to promote a positive atmosphere. Some were humorous, and some were words of wisdom. However, there is one that, to this day, stands out in my mind. It said, “Opportunity knocks only once, but temptation keeps hammering at the door, time after time.” I’ve read similar ...