Traveling across her home country, Michelle Ferreri has noticed a common, if unpleasant, theme.
Ferreri is the Conservative Party Member of Parliament in the Ontario riding of Peterborough-Kawartha, and is the shadow cabinet critic for families, children and social development. She was in Vernon Friday, Aug. 11, as a guest of North Okanagan-Shuswap MP Mel Arnold.
B次元官网网址淪uffering,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淐anada is a vast geographical land but the undercurrent of what we see across Canada is suffering. The cost of living, people canB次元官网网址檛 afford to live. Housing is a massive issue. We heard from a lot of people today that the face of homelessness has changed, itB次元官网网址檚 now families living in hotels.
B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 just a lot of suffering. ItB次元官网网址檚 one of the big common themes, as is the addictions crisis.B次元官网网址�
Arnold and Ferreri spent two hours in a closed door meeting at the Schubert Centre listening to invited stakeholders from the riding, 13 organizations in all represented. Arnold said what was discussed was things that are working, are not working, and what government officials can do better.
B次元官网网址淧eople are at their breaking point,B次元官网网址� said Arnold. B次元官网网址淭hese are groups that theyB次元官网网址檙e on the front line, key people in their organizations, and they canB次元官网网址檛 take anymore. Almost everyone around the room was calling for an ever-increasing need for services and resources.B次元官网网址�
Ferreri said whatB次元官网网址檚 happening now in Canada under the Liberal government is simply not working.
B次元官网网址淒oing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淲e do not have a solution for housing. We have a mental health crisis with children and their parents. We need more housing built. More accountability, more service standards,we need so much more in place in terms of efficiency. We donB次元官网网址檛have that.
B次元官网网址淲e need to change how things are being governed. We need transparency, accountability and we need to understand housing is a massive issue but the cost of livingB次元官网网址eople canB次元官网网址檛 sustain whatB次元官网网址檚 happening on the ground. The cost of food, the cost of gas, the cost of electricity, they canB次元官网网址檛 sustain this any longer. We need a government that cares about fiscal responsibility.B次元官网网址�
Arnold said the solution to solving the crises engulfing the country is not a B次元官网网址渙ne-department solution..
B次元官网网址淓veryone from service providers to municipal, provincial, and federal governments have to be talking to each other,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭he siloing of information, which is one department not talking to another, or not sharing information because of privacy rules, makes the whole process inefficient.B次元官网网址�
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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