Lana Popham, MLA
END-OF-TERM CONSTITUENCY REPORT March 2017
Dear Constituen ts of Saanich South , A
s your elected representative in the Legislature of B ritish Columbia , it is my privileg provide you with e to this summary o f my recent wo As always I wel rk. come your feed back. With the provin cial election fast approaching, I using space in am also this report to p ro vide non-partis information from an Elections BC on how and when to vote. As always, pleas e contact me if you require assi with the BC go stance vernment or hav e concerns regar provincial affair ding s. Warm regards,
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING THE PROVINCIAL ELECTION – MAY 9, 2017 When the “Writ Drops” on April 11, I will no longer be your MLA and my Constituency Office will be closed. Information on candidates running in Saanich South for election (or, in my case, re-election), will be available from Elections BC or from the candidates themselves. A Constituency Office can not engage in partisan activities.
You are entitled to vote if you are a Canadian citizens, have lived in BC since at least November 8 2016, and are 18 or older on May 9 2017.
your address. Acceptable ID includes a bank or credit card statement, utility bill or income tax assessment, healthcare card or passport.
You can register to vote with Elections BC before the election or you can register at the same time and place as you vote. Advance voting is available on Saturday April 29th and Sunday April 30th, and Wednesday – Saturday, May 3rd to May 6th.
You can also vote early at any district electoral office or by mail. You must show identification such as a BC driver’s licence or any card issued by the BC Government that shows your name, photo and address. Alternatively, you can show two pieces ID one of which must include
Post-secondary students can chose to vote in either the electoral district where they reside when at school or the district where they usually live when not at school.
Lana Popham, Member of the Legislative Ass embly of BC for the Constitu ency of Saanic h South
Voters are entitled to four (unpaid) consecutive hours free from work to vote on May 9. More info is available from Elections BC: 250.387.5305 or www.elections.bc.ca
Lana Popham, MLA Saanich South 250.479.4154 | lana.popham.mla@leg.bc.ca 4085-B Quadra St. Saanich BC, V8X 1K5 | www.saanichsouth.ca
INSIDE THE REPORT: My Latest Updates
Town Hall on Unaffordable Housing
Protecting Saanich’s Watersheds
Town Hall on Medical Cannabis
Participation in our Democracy
SUMMARY OF PUBLIC MEETINGS
WHAT CAN I DO FOR YOU? What I do as an MLA and Member of the Official Opposition can be summed up in five points:
1
Listen to constituents to better understand your challenges and perspectives;
2
Assist constituents who are struggling or in crisis;
3 4 5
Propose government actions; Hold the government to account; Organize public events to mobilize concerned citizens or improve our shared quality of life
MLA REPORT
Percentage break-down of casework at the constituency office
10% Education, including: public schools,
20% Health care, including: surgery wait times,
5% Additional challenges related to old-age,
long-term care, complex care, hospital visits, MSP problems, drug costs, mental illness, hospital treatment, and access to family doctors and specialists
15% Environment, including: climate change, ocean and waterway health, and protections for natural places and species-at-risk
Inside the Legislature I have held the following positions:
At my community office I’ve worked to assist hundreds of people who are struggling or in crisis. The chart to the right [??] summarizes this work.
• Opposition Spokesperson for Small Business and Agriculture & Food;
In addition I have not shied away from taking up controversial issues on behalf of the community. This has included work on everything from fighting inadequate restrictions on sex offenders, to questioning how housing is provided for the chronically homeless, to a forum on the medical use of cannabis and public advocacy on the need for improved medical assistance in dying. I’ve also spoken out loudly on a number of environmental issues, most importantly the urgency of fighting climate change and opposition to the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion.
Jobs and Finances, including lack of employment and training opportunities, small business concerns, personal issues with provincial taxation, fees and fines
25% Poverty and social assistance, including: homelessness, lack of affordable housing, inability to pay for food and other essentials, and economic challenges due to long-term disabilities
This spring marks the completion of my second term as your MLA.
I have also organized dozens of community gatherings and public meetings on topics brought forward by residents. Recent examples are included in this report.
10%
• Chair of the Sustainable Economic Development Committee, Opposition Caucus; • Chair of the non-partisan Opposition Standing Committee for Agriculture and Food; • Member, Select Standing Committee on Public Accounts; and • Opposition Spokesperson for Tourism and for Arts & Culture (former).
colleges and universities
5% Children and youth; family and interpersonal crisises
September – December, 2016
I
WATERSHEDS!
Approximately 100 people came out on a cold November night to organize, converse and celebrate the protection of our watersheds and the people that make it happen.
HOUSING {UN}AFFORDABILITY Unaffordable housing is affects many people in BC, and Saanich South is no exception. The community gathered at Reynolds School to talk about solutions.
dying and death of family members
5% Transportation, including highways, road safety, licensing and public transit
5% Other
with hundreds of farmers and leaders in the BC food industry. After listening closely I developed a comprehensive plan for how we can strengthen agriculture in BC. Thank you for the opportunity! It has been an honour.
For those who would like detailed information on my work and positions on matters of public interest, please note that I wrote 18 columns for the Saanich News in the last year. They are all available on my website, www.saanichsouth.ca.
Topics include: Kinder Morgan Pipeline Expansion Sewage treatment
My colleagues and I have drafted Bills and proposed practical solutions to the serious challenges we face in B.C. We’ve held the Premier and Ministers to account for their failures and misdeeds during long debates and hostile question periods.
Improving child-care services in BC
As the Opposition Spokesperson for Agriculture & Food, I have travelled to every corner of the province and met
Helping those who are struggling
Affordable housing crisis Shortage of family doctors Skyrocketing housing costs Improving public education Protecting Elk/Beaver Lake
Medical assistance in dying
There are hundreds of people in our community who volunteer to restore and protect our local watersheds. It might be helping to clean a stream bed so salmon can once again spawn in it, clear invasive species from a bog or protect a pristine lake. To strengthen the ties of those who do this volunteer work -- and to cel-
ebrate their achievements – I helped organize a dinner and certificate ceremony last November. Approximately 100 people attended. The event was held in conjunction with the Capital Regional District, the District of Saanich and the Peninsula Streams Society. Thanks to everyone who made it a success!
COMMUNITY GAMING GRANTS On July, 2017 my office held a forum to demystify the process that is the gaming grant application - believing the process needs to be accessible to all BC redirects a portion of tax revenue from gambling in the province into grants for non-profit associations. They must be providing programs which broadly benefit the community. I helped organize a forum for such non-profits
so they can learn more about how to access these funds. The event was held with the support of the BC Association of Charitable Gaming and CharityWorks, the CRD’s Charitable Gaming Association.
The limited availability of housing – and the rapidly increasing cost for what is on the market is a significant concern for many people in Saanich, whether they are looking to rent or to buy. It is a very large barrier with huge implications for many,
especially young people and those with modest incomes. I recently helped to organize an expert panel discussion and open forum on this topic. We discussed solutions and created momentum to demand more action from all levels of government.
CANNABIS & SENIORS Over 80 people came out on an October afternoon to hear what one of Canada’s top practicing medical experts has to say about the medical use of cannabis. Last October I organized a talk for seniors on the medical uses of cannabis. The speaker is a physician and one of Canada’s top practicing medical experts on the use of medical cannabis. He spoke about when cannabis can be of medical benefit, how it is most effectively used and
how it can be legally obtained. The event was hugely over-subscribed – many more seniors were interested than could fit in the room!