What I’ll Fight For
Families are struggling…
We are all feeling the fact that prices are rising at a far faster rate than wages. Our money does not go nearly as far as it did even just a few years ago. And this (and other factors) is causing the divide between those who have and those who don't to get wider and wider. The cost of renting or buying a home is also rising in part because many of the wealthiest are purchasing more and more housing as investments. At the same time, social programs that we desperately depend on are being eroded. All of this adds up to so many families in our communities struggling just to make ends meet. We need to start addressing this on many fronts. People need employment that provides a liveable wage. Tied in with that is the fact that post-secondary education is financially out of reach for many Canadians. And a living wage is only truly a living wage if it provides enough income to afford a place to live, food, childcare, healthcare- so the costs of those things need to be reined in. The NDP has already made gains in these areas as far as introducing a national dental program and pushing for universal pharmacare and childcare.
Yes, the NDP has made great strides in the area of health care, and there is still more to do…
Thinking in terms of our healthcare, we have to put a stop to privatization so that our universal healthcare program does not end up being sub-standard. We also need to make sure that vision care and mental health services are included in that program.
Climate change needs SERIOUS attention NOW
The environment/climate change needs to be more drastically addressed. We need to develop serious emission targets and actually meet them. Fossil fuel subsidies need to be eliminated as do single-use plastics. Along with a housing crisis, we have an environmental one about which we can no longer be complacent.
We need to be more vocal and active in protecting the rights of society’s most vulnerable members…
We need to uphold the rights of vulnerable members in our communities including the elderly, persons with disabilities and members of the LGBTQ2S+ community. The rhetoric being thrown around by Pierre Poilievre these days suggests that these groups will be targets should a Conservative government be elected.
Though we have made some strides, we need to continue to work on advancing gender equity. In addition, we all know that Indigenous and racialized people in our country continue to experience racism in their communities and in our institutions. We need an action plan to confront racism on all levels.
Electoral reform is LONG overdue…
And lastly, I'll mention electoral reform that would make each of our votes count. The Liberals promised to introduce this and, as we know, did not. We need to come up with proportional representation that works for Canada.