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Victoria Report: Reconnecting over coffee and conversation

Fraser-Nicola MLA Jackie Tegart will be holding ‘Coffee with Jackie’ sessions
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Fraser-Nicola MLA Jackie Tegart (c) with Ashcroft and District Lions Club members Gordon and Darlene Daly at the 2022 Smile Cookies fundraiser. Tegart will be holding ‘Coffee and Conversation’ sessions throughout the riding in the coming weeks. (Photo credit: Facebook)

By Fraser-Nicola MLA Jackie Tegart

Fraser-Nicola is a big riding to explore, and soon I will be making a visit to a number of communities —including Ashcroft and Cache Creek — as I embark on another Spring Constituency Tour.

This will be a wonderful chance to reconnect after a challenging few years. The pandemic certainly limited our ability to gather together as much as we would like, particularly out and about in the community. It’s been so nice to see many public events return, along with a sense of optimism for the future which has been missing for some time.

That’s not to say there aren’t challenges — from health care, to seniors’ services, to housing and other affordability concerns — but I continue to work hard on your behalf in the legislature and in the constituency to deliver positive results for the community.

The provincial government recently delivered its 2023 budget. It was big on spending, and we hope this will translate into positive outcomes for people. I would have liked to have seen more attention paid to our natural resource industries, whose contributions pay for the vital services people need, but sadly the budget fell short.

While I welcome the $1 billion over the next three years to build more climate-resilient communities, including improvements to the Coquihalla Highway, I will note there were no specifics mentioned for Lytton. It’s easy to be sceptical about how the government will manage $1 billion in disaster funding when rebuilding efforts in communities like Lytton, Hope, and Merritt have been slower than expected.

Whether it’s the provincial budget or a local issue you’d like to discuss, or whether you’d like to just come and say hello and enjoy a cup of coffee, I can’t wait to see you in-person at “Coffee with Jackie”. I will be in Ashcroft on Wednesday, March 15 from 11 a.m. to noon at Unitea, and in Cache Creek on Thursday, March 16 from 11 a.m. to noon at Hungry Herbie’s. I hope to see you there!



editorial@accjournal.ca

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