Writer Laments Absence of MP From Poverty Debate.

-
Dear Editor, 

I’m disappointed that our Conservative Member of Parliament, Robert Sopuck did not attend the forum on child poverty here in Neepawa recently. 
The four other candidates were there, explaining what their parties would try to do to make sure not as many kids go hungry as is presently the case. 

Not only does Manitoba have the highest rate of poverty among children of all the provinces, there are hungry kids right here in the Neepawa too. So it’s not just a problem “over there” somewhere.

Neepawa’s Child and Family Services Worker, Dawn Haines-Shaw told a church group recently, her case load became so full, she was unable to handle the larger Neepawa district to which she had initially been assigned and now is responsible for the Town only. She said the poor need better transportation, more affordable housing and often struggle with emotional problems which keep them from going to appointments where they might be able to get help.

An official of the Salvation Army in Neepawa, Amanda Laughton-Gale, told the same group, she estimates, by year’s end, they will have helped one thousand individuals - kids and grownups - with food from the food bank, clothing and, at Christmas, toys and food hampers.

Mr. Sopuck told me after the forum that his government’s emphasis on economic development, is the way to tackle the issue. I’m sure he sincerely believes that. 

I don’t. 

After 10 years of Conservative rule (and Liberals before that), those kinds of “trickle down” theories have left more Canadian kids hungry today than there were in 1989, when the House of Commons unanimously resolved to end child poverty by 2000. That was 15 years ago, folks. 

 How much longer will we make them wait?

Larry Powell lives in Neepawa, where he publishes PlanetInPeril.ca 
========

RELATED: Kate Storey, Green Party Candidate for Dauphin-Swan River-Neepawa says
'The biggest issue in this riding is poverty, but nobody will talk about it'

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Conservative MP Absent From a Child Poverty Forum in Southwestern Manitoba.

-
Image
Are hungry kids a priority for the Harper government? by Larry Powell The forum (for the riding of Dauphin - Swan River - Neepawa) was sponsored by the Mission and Services Committee of the Neepawa United Church. It drew about 80 people to the church on Wednesday. But only four of the five candidates (see below) took part in the debate -  Ray  Piché  (Liberal),   Kate Storey (Green Party),  Inky Mark (Ind.) and  Laverne Lewycky (NDP) . The 5th candidate, the sitting Conservative MP for the area, Robert Sopuck (represented by the empty chair on the right), did not attend. His office manager in Neepawa, Christine Waddell, said he was in Inglis, a small community in the western part of the riding for the evening. She did not elaborate. But she did explain that a campaign worker was mistaken when he told forum organizers earlier that Mr. Sopuck would, in fact be there. Piché , the Liberal candidate, said the MP's absence showed “disrespect” for the rest of the candidates
Read more

A Candidate's Forum on Child Poverty Touches a Nerve in Manitoba.

-
Image
by Larry Powell Planet In Peril has sorted through some of the confusion surrounding the absence of Robert Sopuck (above), the Conservative Member of Parliament for Dauphin-Swan River-Neepawa,  from a candidates' forum on child poverty in Neepawa on Wednesday.  About a month ago, his office told forum organizers that he would be attending.  But his office manager in Neepawa, Christine Waddell, later announced he could not attend due to "scheduling conflicts." She said the night of the event, he was in Inglis, a small town in the western part of his riding.  This morning, however, Sopuck himself told PinP he had actually been in Roblin, a larger town just north of Inglis. A newspaper ad indicated it was a "meet and greet" affair. But that was in the morning in Roblin, a town within a 3-hour drive of Neepawa. So it's still not clear what the event in Inglis was which took priority over a candidate's forum. The MP bristled at my suggestion th
Read more

The Bio of Larry Powell - publisher of this blog.

-
Image
Larry Powell Powell is a veteran, award-winning journalist based in Shoal Lake, Manitoba, Canada. He specialize in stories about agriculture and the environment. For decades, he worked for broadcast outlets in all four provinces in western Canada. This included a 5 years stint as Senior Editor for CBC Radio News in Saskatchewan. He is authorized to receive embargoed news releases on important, global stories, through the Science Media Centre of Canada, the Royal Society, Nature Research and the World Weather Attribution Network. He's a member of the Science Writers and Communicators of Canada, the Canadian Association of  Journalists and a past member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2020, Powell joined an international team of writers providing articles for the Swiss-based online journal, Focusing on Wildlife - celebrating  the biodiversity of Planet Earth. In June, 2014, he was a panelist at a world conference in          Winnipeg entitled Holding
Read more