MP Report August 10, 2021

Setting Priorities – What is top of mind for the Prime Minister may not be top of mind for other Canadians. Wildfires raging across much of BC have triggered a provincial state of emergency and communities of the Okanagan – Shuswap and beyond are living with various levels of alert or evacuation orders while contending with oppressive amounts of heat and smoke.
At the same time, there is an increasing emergence of a fourth wave of COVID-19 with case counts growing rapidly in BC and other parts of Canada.
Within these realities, I do not see how a federal election is a priority for British Columbians right now. Regardless, the Prime Minister and his partisans are positioning for an election as they dole out pre-election style announcements and promises day after day. All of this and more is occurring as an attempt to buy votes for an election that is expected to begin before the end of summer.
If the Prime Minister is going to trigger an election, perhaps he could inform Canadians and maybe explain why it is that he wants an election now at a time when the health and economic security of Canadians should be his Number One Priority.
Imagine the relief and progress Canadians could experience if the Trudeau set aside his pursuit of majority power and instead focused his attention on supporting economic sectors and workers that have been hurt and destabilized by the pandemic.
There are other pressing non-election matters that the PM should prioritize over an election, including inflation rates at highest levels in over a decade, our US neighbors looking at tougher “Buy America” rules and a decline in Canada’s relevance on the international stage. All these should be of high priority for a national leader, but do not appear to be priorities for ours.
If the Prime Minister does call on the Governor General to dissolve Parliament and force an election, Canadians can count on my Conservative colleagues and I to be ready to stand up for your priorities and security as our nation and province contend with the challenges we face today and in the future.
What are your priorities? If you can take a moment to let me know, I would appreciate it. You can email me at ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Mel.Arnold@parl.gc.ca