Weekly Update From Kenora MP Eric Melillo:
I’m back in Ottawa this week, fighting for the Kenora riding in the House of Commons.
With Parliament on break last week, I spent a lot of time in meetings with constituents, municipal leaders, and public health officials to discuss recovery in our region. I had a lot of productive conversations, and I’m looking forward to bringing forward these issues in Parliament.
Our top priorities must be getting through this crisis, recovering our economy, and securing Canada’s future.
If we want to get back to normal, we need widespread deployment of vaccines in Canada. Unfortunately, the Liberal government has botched the procurement process, and Canada has fallen behind – we’re now 38th in the world for vaccine distribution.
I’ve been in consistent contact with public health officials in the Kenora region and have been keeping the Health Minister updated on what they tell me. I am urging her to expedite the delivery of vaccines to vulnerable communities and frontline healthcare workers in Northern Ontario.
Canadians need the government to succeed on this so we can all get our lives back. I’ve used every opportunity at my disposal to hold the government to account and demand a real plan for vaccines.
We also need to focus on recovering our economy.
Business owners and workers in the Kenora riding want to see a plan to re-open safely and get back to work. And tourism operators, many of whom rely on customers from the United States, need clarity on whether they will be able to have a season. The government needs to give clear answers on what the coming months might look like, whether vaccinated Americans will be able to cross the border, and when Canadians can expect to resume normal activities.
Northern Ontarians also need to see progress in areas where we have been consistently underserved, from infrastructure to internet to access to health and social services. I’m committed to advocating for real results for the Kenora riding.
It’s an honour to be working for you as MP for the Kenora riding. I’m committed to standing up for the interests of Northern Ontario, creating opportunities in our region, and securing our country’s future in this uncertain time.
