MGEU's Throne Speech List
Nov 18, 2016
On Monday, November 21st, the Manitoba Government will lay out their blueprint for the province as the Lieutenant Governor reads the Speech from The Throne. The Throne Speech will outline what the government’s main priorities are for the upcoming legislative session. It’s also a time where governments announce new initiatives they plan to undertake.
Judging from what’s been in the media and what the Premier continues to talk about we’ll be hearing a lot about managing the provinces finances. A very important job, but it is how that job gets done that we need to pay close attention to. Manitobans didn’t vote for cuts and austerity and that’s not what the Premier campaigned on. Manitobans voted for a party that made a clear and high profile commitment to protect and invest in public services and keep them public. The MGEU will be looking for a clear sign this government is going to follow through on that commitment. A commitment to protect and invest in the public services that Manitoba families count on - health care, home care, corrections, conservation and family services just to name a few. Our members tell us daily that they are stretched thin. In fact, in the civil service alone there is a 10% vacancy rate. That’s almost 1500 less people working to provide services we all count on. This makes it very challenging to ensure vital public services are there for Manitoba families when they need them.
We’re also hoping to see the government follow through on their pledge to move forward with paramedic self-regulation and their commitment to community paramedicine. The MGEU has long been advocating for self-regulation for paramedics and an independent College of Paramedicine. This will improve patient care and provide consistency, transparency, and accountability in the delivery of this vital health care service.
When it comes to community paramedicine, we know this will greatly impact and improve emergency medical services in rural Manitoba where communities struggle to keep their emergency rooms open. We need to start thinking outside the box about how we can provide rural families with the same access to emergency medical care that those in urban centers have. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to join some of our paramedics at a conference in Saskatoon discussing collaborative ways all health care professionals can work together to deliver health care services. I’ve spoken with our health minister about both of these topics and now’s the time to put these ideas into action.
Finally, we want to see this government invest in our infrastructure to keep the economy going with job security for our members. For example, with winter coming we need to make sure our snow plows are ready to hit the highway. This won’t happen if we don’t have experienced and dedicated staff to drive the machines and service the machines. This is a public service all Manitobans count on.
The Throne Speech will be live streamed at www.gov.mb.ca/thronespeech/index.html starting at about 1:30pm on Monday, November 21. I know many of you will join me in watching and listening carefully.
Comments
Comments are now closed