Greater Victoria kicked off the first official day of the federal campaign season with a listening session for candidates from the regionB次元官网网址檚 electoral districts.

Elected officials and community leaders gathered at the Victoria Conference Centre Wednesday evening for a session outlining the regionB次元官网网址檚 priorities heading into CanadaB次元官网网址檚 43rd general election.

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The meeting covered six key priorities as they pertain to Greater Victoria: labour, transportation, childcare, housing, climate change and reconciliation. The panel navigated the complex issues with succinct and focused presentations, finishing each with B次元官网网址渁sksB次元官网网址� for the federal government and the potential MPs dotting the lecture theatre.

Covering climate change, Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps suggested the federal government mandate climate change action plans from Canadian cities with details on how each local government will help Canada meet climate change targets.

Helps also echoed a sentiment sheB次元官网网址檚 shared before.

B次元官网网址淐ities need more power, more money and more authority to effectively deal with climate change,B次元官网网址� she said.

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Paul Nursey, CEO of Destination Greater Victoria, advised immigration and training as paths forward for progress in Greater VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 labour and workforce, a sentiment echoed by Catherine Holt, CEO of the Greater VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 Chamber of Commerce.

Holt, in her presentation on childcare, called the current situation B次元官网网址渁bysmal,B次元官网网址� noting the lack of childcare spaces and cost of care. She asked the candidates to consider the impacts of increased investments, remarking that B次元官网网址渁vailable and affordable childcare has a direct impact on parentsB次元官网网址� ability to work in our region.B次元官网网址�

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Jeff Bray, CEO of the Downtown Victoria Business Association, honed in on housing and affordability, an issue he said B次元官网网址渞equires leadership from all levels of government.B次元官网网址�

He asked the federal representatives to continue implementing the national housing strategy, extend support for Indigenous housing options and create tax incentives encouraging private sector investment in rental housing.

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After a brief question period, a handful of MP candidates took the stage. Candidates from the Green party, NDP, Liberal party, PeopleB次元官网网址檚 Party of Canada and the Animal Protection Party of Canada made their campaign bid to the theatre, each using their two-minute time limit to tell the crowd why they deserve to be voted for.