Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

CATHY McLEOD -- Sweeping changes to the Elections Act are being proposed

 

Liberal Government prepares for pandemic election:

 

Instead of the Federal Government focusing on its pandemic response with COVID vaccine distribution and rapid testing, the Liberals are proposing changes to the Canada Elections Act, lest there be an election while the pandemic continues.

Introduced last Thursday, Bill C-19 proposes a raft of changes including how voting can happen and when, such as:

  • three days of in-person voting, including the traditional Monday voting day, but also a Saturday and Sunday 
  • in the 13 days prior to regular voting, allowing votes to occur in long-term care homes
  • mail-in ballots
  • the ability to request online a mail-in ballot be sent to a voter


The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs has heard countless hours of testimony as part of an ongoing pandemic election study and are continuing to hear from witnesses.

 

It’s unclear why the Liberals are proceeding on this before the committee puts forward its recommendations on the matter.

 

Instead of figuring out how to send Canadians to the polls while adhering to social distancing measures during a pandemic, should we not be focusing on how to get people access to a vaccine and rapid testing?

 

Canadians don’t want an election; they want their lives and their livelihoods back. They deserve clarity and certainty from their Federal Government on how this is going to happen, instead of pondering how to get them to the polls.

 

The Conservatives plan to review the legislation and discuss it as a caucus.



Youth advocate will shine on:

Kamloops lost one of its most tireless champions of homeless youth when she passed away this month. Katherine McParland was the driving force behind A Way Home Kamloops, which united a coalition of organizations and businesses to help end youth homelessness.

 

Having lived on the streets and grown up in the foster care system, she knew first-hand the challenges youth experiencing homelessness faced and worked hard to establish safe, supported housing for them.

 

Katherine was a lovely, bright young woman, the recipient of countless awards, who touched all she met with her warmth and grace.  

 

Her legacy will carry on . . . last weekend, community volunteers raised over $100,000 for the society by camping out overnight in cardboard boxes. You can learn more at www.awayhomekamloops.com/

 

 

Cathy McLeod ... is the Conservative MP for Kamloops – Thompson – Cariboo, and is the Shadow Minister for Crown-Indigenous Relations.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block being salvaged?” ~~ Ward Stamer, Kamloops-North Thompson MLA

Today, BC NDP forest Minister Ravi Parmar made this pronouncement; ‘Removing red tape has sped up permitting, allowing for more wood to be salvaged, quicker’. 4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block?    ~~ BC Conservative Forests Critic Ward Stamer While acknowledging the NDP government has recognized improvements were needed in permitting and accessing burnt fibre in a timely fashion, the reality is, they are barely making a dent in the problem.  This government's recognition that only seven percent of pulp mill fibre came from burnt timber in 2024-25, quite simply put, is a failure. And the recent announcement, just three weeks ago, that the Crofton Pulp Mill would be permanently closing, is proof of that.     Instead of Premier David Eby’s government addressing core issues being faced by British Columbia’s forest industry, they are doing little more than manipulating the facts, ...
1 comment
Read more

A message from BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer, and the Kamloops – North Thompson Riding Association

2025 was a busy first year. As a Caucus, we worked very hard to defeat Bills 14 and 15, legislation which allows the provincial government to move ahead without environmental assessments on renewable projects, and that also allows cabinet to build infrastructure projects without getting approval from local municipal governments. This is not acceptable to your BC Conservative caucus, and we will continue to press this government for open and transparent projects in the future.  Two things we had success in were having the first Private Members bill passed in over 40 years. The first was Jody Toors Prenatal and Post Natal Care bill, and then there was my private members Bill M217 Mandatory Dashcams in commercial vehicles (passed second reading unanimously and is heading to Committee in February). Regrettably, much of the legislation passed by the government was little more than housekeeping bills, or opportunities to strengthen the ability of Cabinet Ministers to bypass the BC legi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Wildfire waste plan torched -- Forestry critic Stamer calls BC's wildfire salvage rate 'a failure'

Claims that BC is making progress salvaging wildfire-damaged timber are masking deeper problems in the forest sector, the province’s forestry critic says. Last week, BC’s Ministry of Forests said mills in the province processed more than one million cubic metres of wildfire chips in 2024-25, up from 500,000 cubic metres in 2023 and representing about seven per cent of all processed wood. Kamloops-North Thompson BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer said those claims of progress ignore the reality that only a fraction of burned timber is being used ... CLICK HERE for the full story
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more