MP Maryam Monsef: Looking forward to 2021
As we work toward rebuilding, we know some things cannot go back to business as usual
In difficult times we look to one another, to our friends, neighbours and community to pull each other up and ensure that everything is going to be OK.
We needed each other more than ever in 2020, and this community responded with the kind of resiliency and compassion that makes me so proud to call Peterborough-Kawartha home.
As we work toward rebuilding, we know that some things cannot go back to business as usual. The pandemic has given us the unique opportunity to fix the vulnerabilities in our societies that have been exposed.
Seniors living in long-term-care homes have been immensely affected during this pandemic, and we will work to ensure that something like this never happens again. We’ll work with the provinces and territories to set new, national standards for long-term care, so seniors get the best care possible.
While our robust health care system has managed the pandemic well, it has made the need for things like access to a primary care physician, mental health services, virtual health care services and universal pharmacare more obvious. We look forward to working with the provinces and territories to achieve these goals and strengthen our health-care system.
Working from home has been a possibility for many sectors of the economy, thanks to a world-class internet infrastructure. Unfortunately, some rural Canadians haven’t been able to fully participate in this evolution in the same way. That’s why we’re accelerating timelines and ambitions of the Universal
The pandemic has given us the unique opportunity to fix the vulnerabilities in our societies that have been exposed
Broadband Fund, so every Canadian, no matter where they live, can have access to reliable high-speed internet services.
The future is green. Long-term competitiveness will be achieved through clean growth while fighting climate change. The time is now to transition away from fossil fuels and invest in clean energy, increased energy efficiency, and reliable public transportation options.
Despite the challenges put in front of us in 2020, we continue to move forward with our vision for Peterborough-Ka
wartha. Today, more affordable housing is being built, major infrastructure projects like the causeway and EORN Cell Gap Project are progressing, Peterborough is getting an upgraded bus fleet and a new composting centre, Curve Lake is closer to clean water than it has been in 50 years, and we now have two federally-funded teams of front-line workers on the streets fighting the opioid crisis 24-7.
There is much more work to do, but know that as we move forward, we move forward together — as fellow Canadians, neighbours, and as a community.
Wishing you and yours all the best in 2021 and beyond.
Maryam Monsef is the member of Parliament for Peterborough-Kawartha, minister for women and gender equality and minister of rural economic development.