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MP hears about seniors’ needs at local town halls

Jati Sidhu was in local communities last week, meeting with constituents and hearing their comments.
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Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon MP Jati Sidhu at a town hall meeting in Lytton to discuss seniors’ issues.

Jati Sidhu, Member of Parliament for Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon, wrapped up a series of seven town hall meetings last week with stops in Cache Creek and Ashcroft on March 14. The meetings were an opportunity for Sidhu to discuss the National Seniors’ Strategy, a pan-Canadian plan to improve the quality of life and strengthen access to care for the nation’s seniors, and hear feedback from constituents.

“The response we received was overwhelmingly positive,” Sidhu says. “Each of the town halls gave us invaluable feedback, and we were very happy with both the turn-out and the reception we received.

“We were also very impressed with the wide range of ideas and issues raised, and my office is now compiling all the contributions to help shape this initiative and get that feedback to the committee responsible.”

While there were many different concerns raised by attendees at the different meetings, several topics were raised consistently, including financial security; housing; eldercare; transportation; and improved access to federal services.

At the Ashcroft meeting, 20 people were on hand to listen to Sidhu talk about the National Seniors’ Strategy. It is an initiative of Marc Serré, MP for Nickel Belt (Ontario), who tabled the original motion for the creation of the strategy in May 2016. He has been working closely with Sidhu on this issue as it continues being studied by the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development (also known as HUMA). Serré attended the town halls in Mission and Agassiz.

“MP Sidhu has been a great ally in this initiative, and it’s been a pleasure working with him on this from the start,” Serré says. “His input will have a major influence on the National Seniors’ Strategy, and his constituents should know the hard work and passion he has brought to bear here. Mr. Sidhu is helping to shape a monumental program for Canadians.”

Sidhu spoke of the need to look after seniors across the country, noting that by 2024 seniors will account for 20.1 per cent of the population, and that people aged 85+ are the fastest-growing sector of the population. He said that the federal government has committed $6 billion over the next 10 years to improve seniors’ access to homecare, and is investing $40 billion over 10 years to build more than 12,000 new affordable housing units for seniors. He also spoke of the federal New Horizons for Seniors program, which provides up to $25,000 in grant funding per year to local organizations for community-based projects that focus on seniors.

One question in Ashcroft involved the steps necessary to create affordable housing in the town, with Sidhu replying that the first step is to ensure proper zoning by the municipal government, then going to the provincial and federal governments. “Tell us your plan, show us how you put it together, and say ‘This is the money we need.’”

It was pointed out that there is only one palliative care bed in the area (at the Ashcroft Hospital) serving all the communities from Spences Bridge to Clinton. “How can we get more so that people who have lived all their life in the community can die in the community?” Sidhu advised being in touch with the MLA to ask about provincial funding.

Another question regarded the need for grant money to help develop a plan so that a seniors’ co-housing group can use that plan to take to the various levels of government. “Having the ability to get grant funding to get expertise to create the plan would be a big help.” Sidhu suggested New Horizons for Seniors as a source for grant funding, and sending the file number of the request to his office so that he can provide a letter of support to go with it.

While the town halls were a success, Sidhu knows there is still much work to do.

“We want to know how the federal government can improve access to housing for seniors, aging in place, income security, and overall quality of life,” he says. “As Canadians are living longer and our population gets older, we need to be prepared to ensure the highest level of service and care for our seniors. That’s why I got involved with this initiative, and from what we heard at the town halls, my constituents agree.”

To learn more about the HUMA Committee’s study on developing a National Seniors’ Strategy, or to submit a written brief, visit http://bit.ly/2Ix9wWO.



editorial@accjournal.ca

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