Editorials, Letters & Political Commentary

En tournée à Sault Ste. Marie, le premier ministre Trudeau continue d’ignorer le vrai problème, à savoir que le coût de tout reste très élevé dans le Nord de l’Ontario et qu’il ne cesse de voter pour rendre la vie plus difficile aux Canadiennes et Canadiens, alors que les ultra-riches réalisent des profits records. Pas plus tard que cette semaine, ...

As Prime Minister Trudeau makes the rounds in Sault Ste. Marie, he continues to ignore the elephant in the room – that the cost of everything still remains sky-high in Northern Ontario and that he’s continually voted to make life harder for everyday Canadians while the ultra-rich sees record profits. Just this week, he teamed up with the Conservatives to ...

During Question Period (November 2, 2023), Official Opposition Health critic France Gélinas (Nickel Belt) questioned Minister of Health Sylvia Jones about what long waits for emergency medical services will mean for patient care: “On Monday, the Toronto Paramedics Union issued a code red to indicate that no ambulances were available to respond to emergency calls. That was the second code ...

In light of the 110th Anniversary of the Justice Meredith Report, NDP MPP Lise Vaugeois (Thunder Bay—Superior North), Official Opposition critic for WSIB and Injured Workers, is speaking out against the deteriorating situation for injured and ill workers caused by the Ford Conservatives. In 1913, Justice Meredith’s three-year Royal Commission delivered a report that set forth a system for fair ...

During question period today, MPP Michael Mantha (Algoma-Manitoulin) called on the Minister of Health, Sylvia Jones, to pass his bill to fix the Northern Health Travel Grant (NHTG).   “Northerners rely on the NHTG to make sure that no one is denied the care they need because of the costs.” said Mantha. “However, my office is constantly hearing from constituents ...

Following the tragic and horrific loss of five people, including three children, as a result of intimate partner violence in Sault Ste. Marie, Official Opposition NDP Leader Marit Stiles urgently called on Premier Ford to take action and declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario. “Tragically, gender-based violence and femicide is on the rise, and we are long overdue ...

October 25th, 2023   Dear Community Partner,   The Wawa Christmas Hamper needs your help! For over 60 years, we have been providing families in need, seniors and the less fortunate in the Wawa area with Christmas hampers to help brighten their holiday season. Hampers include all the fixings for a Christmas dinner including a turkey, potatoes, vegetables, fruit and ...

La semaine passée, les néo-démocrates ont adopté une motion visant à forcer les PDG des grandes chaînes d’épicerie du Canada à comparaître à nouveau pour s’expliquer sur la flambée des prix des aliments. Cette motion fait suite à l’échec lamentable du ministre libéral de l’Industrie à faire baisser les prix des aliments pour la population canadienne. L’approche inadaptée des libéraux, ...

Last week, New Democrats passed a motion to force Canada’s big grocery CEOs to come back to testify regarding sky-high food prices. This comes after the Liberal Industry Minister’s abysmal failure to bring down food prices for Canadians. The Liberals’ out-of-touch approach to politely ask grocery CEOs to ‘stabilize’ prices that are already sky-high isn’t working — and Canadians need ...

Ontario NDP MPP Guy Bourgouin (Mushkegowuk— James Bay), Official Opposition critic for Natural Resources and Forestry, and Lise Vaugeois (Thunder Bay—Superior North) are calling out the Ford Conservatives for their disregard for the dedicated Wildland firefighters who have been courageously engaging in life-threatening work, on behalf of the people of Ontario. Last week, the Ford Conservatives held a press conference ...

Today during Question Period Michael Mantha, MPP for Algoma-Manitoulin, called on Health Minister Sylvia Jones to address potential closures of emergency rooms (ER) in Northern Ontario.   Last week, Manitoulin Health Centre announced that they may have to close one of their ERs for days throughout the month of October due to a shortage of doctors. Other hospitals in Algoma-Manitoulin, ...

Ontario NDP MPP Chris Glover (Spadina – Fort York), Official Opposition Critic for Accessibility and Disability Justice Sarah Jama (Hamilton Centre), and MPP Peter Tabuns (Toronto – Danforth) announced their legislation today, September 18, 2023 to proclaim September 23rd as the International Day of Sign Languages to raise awareness about the importance of sign languages, the need for accessibility services, ...

MPP Michael Mantha (Algoma-Manitoulin) responded to Health Minister Sylvia Jones’ announcement that the government will provide a one-time funding increase to Public Health Units (PHU) who voluntarily merge. “In the North PHUs provide services to vast areas spanning dozens of communities with unique needs and circumstances,” said Mantha. “The realities faced by Northern PHUs are different from those in urban ...

Regular readers of this column are accustomed to me relating events and issues at Queen’s Park to everyday experiences that I find myself in, be they personal or professional. I think, in a way, the writing style compliments the way I approach my job. It is one of the things I do to stay focused, grounded and in touch with ...

Les lecteurs réguliers de cette chronique savent que je fais des liens entre les événements quotidiens et les enjeux de Queen’s Park. Je pense que, d’une certaine manière, le style d’écriture complète la façon dont j’aborde mon travail. C’est l’une des choses que je fais pour rester en contact avec les gens d’Algoma-Manitoulin. Cette semaine, cependant, ce que je veux ...