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Julie Dzerowicz Member of Parliament
Davenport

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Hello Davenport friends and neighbours!

There is so much happening!  It’s hard to know where to begin.

I’ll start with something local and special. This week, I attended an announcement at the Nia Centre for the Arts — the first Black professional Arts Centre in Canada.  I joined Ministers Ien and Khera for an exciting announcement: $9.1 million to support 84 projects that are working to fight anti-Black racism and improve social and economic outcomes for Black communities in Canada.   One of the projects is Davenport-based St. Clare Black Moms! The announcement is part of the $200 million endowment fund the federal government gave to the Black Canadian community to build capacity and to support the  Black Canadian community from an economic and social perspective  for decades to come; it is also part of our efforts to combat the systemic racism that Black Canadians continue to face in Canada.  It was one of the most moving events I have attended in my almost 9 years in politics. 

In other exciting news — yesterday, Loblaws announced it will sign the Grocery Sector Code of Conduct, for which Ministers MacAulay and Lamontagne have expressed their support. The Ministers are now calling on the remaining large retailers to sign.  “Finally” is what I say! I know so many of you have expressed concerns about the cost of food and many in our community have  boycotted Loblaws and its subsidiaries as a response to continued high food prices that go beyond the global issues of transportation and supply chain.

Moving to the issue of housing, and other affordability issues, the Ford Ontario government is failing to invest the money we have given them on housing and on child care — and it is a serious issue. To date, eight provinces and territories already offer $10-a-day child care.  The Ontario government is putting up roadblocks to rolling out the child care program despite committing to do so and despite receiving money from the federal government.  We continue to make the investments needed to ensure a successful child care program — this week the Prime Minister announced that our government is providing Ontario with $201.87 million to create childcare spaces and support inclusive child care services across the provinces, as part of our goal of creating 86,000 new child care spaces in Ontario by 2026. 

On the housing front — our federal government has given billions for housing at the provincial and municipal level in Ontario, including $357 million to the Province for affordable housing. When we went to ask Ontario for their plan on how they are using these dollars, they provided a plan that only reached 28% of the agreed upon targets. Our federal government has said that with or without the involvement of the Government of Ontario, we will ensure that affordable housing and housing supports for the most vulnerable are provided to the communities and residents in Ontario who need it most.

Right now, I am worried about our federation —  we are failing to work together to address the issues and challenges faced by all Canadians.  Our federal government cannot do everything alone.  The constitution splits our responsibilities (federal, provincial) and right now the provinces have to step up — our federal government can only do so much.

The Government of Ontario needs to step up on climate change, they need to step up on child care, they need to step up on housing, they need to step up on training and retraining those in our workforce, and they need to step up on health care. We have given the Province a colossal amount of money for each of these areas. They are dragging their feet.  They are dithering. They have the money and they are not delivering.

Moving back to local issues, I’ve received a number of calls asking about my position on the U of T encampment protests for Palestine. As Canadians, we have a right to protest and I am a firm believer in and supporter of that right. At the same time, this right is not absolute and must be exercised peacefully, without compromising personal safety and security.  

The war in Gaza continues to be deeply distressing. My focus is to continue to press for an immediate ceasefire and a pathway for humanitarian aid to reach the innocent civilians  trapped in Gaza.  

A couple of weeks ago, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, was  hit with catastrophic flooding. It’s heartbreaking  to see the impact: more than 1.9 million affected, 600,000 displaced and over 100 dead.  International Development Minister Hussen’s team is in touch with agencies on the ground to coordinate support and we will continue to monitor this situation to see how else we can be helpful.

I want to close by talking about the amazing Davenport Youth Council. What an amazing team of leaders of today and tomorrow!!!  We had our second meeting this week and  a great discussion on media and key policy issues to tackle as a group. I am filled with hope working together with our young constituents.

I reminded them, and I remind all of you, that tens of thousands of Canada Summer Jobs are now open for applications!

I wish everyone a wonderful Victoria Day long weekend!

My very best regards,
Julie Dzerowicz
Member of Parliament – Davenport