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.
鈥淪uffering,鈥� she said. 鈥淐anada is a vast geographical land but the undercurrent of what we see across Canada is suffering. The cost of living, people can鈥檛 afford to live. Housing is a massive issue. We heard from a lot of people today that the face of homelessness has changed, it鈥檚 now families living in hotels.
鈥淭here鈥檚 just a lot of suffering. It鈥檚 one of the big common themes, as is the addictions crisis.鈥�
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.
鈥淧eople are at their breaking point,鈥� said Arnold. 鈥淭hese are groups that they鈥檙e on the front line, key people in their organizations, and they can鈥檛 take anymore. Almost everyone around the room was calling for an ever-increasing need for services and resources.鈥�
Ferreri said what鈥檚 happening now in Canada under the Liberal government is simply not working.
鈥淒oing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity,鈥� she said. 鈥淲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 don鈥檛have that.
鈥淲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 living鈥eople can鈥檛 sustain what鈥檚 happening on the ground. The cost of food, the cost of gas, the cost of electricity, they can鈥檛 sustain this any longer. We need a government that cares about fiscal responsibility.鈥�
Arnold said the solution to solving the crises engulfing the country is not a 鈥渙ne-department solution..
鈥淓veryone from service providers to municipal, provincial, and federal governments have to be talking to each other,鈥� he said. 鈥淭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.鈥�
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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