Judy Klassen pushes for government support for Bill 231 to address harrassment for elected municipal officials but gets no support from the govenrment

On Thursday June 14, Judy Klassen, Liberal MLA for Kewatinook, asked for government support for her Bill 231 which will provide protection from municipally elected officials who are subject to bullying and harrassment. Bill 231 provides for a place for elected municipal councillors to report such bullying and harrassment and to have it addressed. At the present time elected municipal councillors do not have this protection. Sadly, in his response, the Minister of Finance avoided the question of whether he will support Bill 231. Judy Klassen's question and the Minister's answer are below. For more on Bill 231 see this link.

Bullying and Harassment Prevention - Support for Bill 231

Ms. Judy Klassen (Kewatinook): I brought forward Bill 231 because all elected officials have no recourse, no one to turn to under any current legislation. We tried to express our concerns here, and as typical fashion, we victims are not believed, our concerns dismissed.

My ancestors led me to here to ensure life is better for victims–nay, for survivors.

I'm here to say to the First Minister, he will never have power over me. I have my coping tools. But I need for others to be assured they hold their own power. I need to ensure they have these types of tools and, as equally, to have recourse.

Will this government support Bill 231, or when will they introduce their version?

Hon. Cameron Friesen (Minister of Finance): Well, Madam Speaker, rejecting much of the premise of the member, we would remind that member and all members of the legislation of our no-wrong-door policy. This government has taken a strong stance. We need to make sure that everyone feels welcome, secure in coming to work for the Manitoba government. It's why we're disclosing now on an annual basis instances of harassment. We are tracking them.

We are ejecting what was done before and we are transforming our system through being–just–clear with Manitobans and transparent about the process. We are taking steps; we are improving the processes, and we are going to do more.

Comparison between Manitoba and South Dakota shows dramatic impact of Physical Distancing

Manitoba implemented physical distancing measures in mid-March. South Dakota has still not made physical distancing mandatory. The result is a dramatic difference in the incidence of covid-19 viral infections between the two jurisdictions. This graph shows the number of people with Covid-19 infections from March 27 to April 14. Manitoba ( red line ) started leveling off about April 4 and has seen only a small increase in Covid-19 infections since then. South Dakota ( blue line ) has seen a dramatic increase in Covid-19 infections since April 4. Those who are skeptical of the impact of physical distancing in Manitoba should look at this graph! Data are from the Johns Hopkins daily tabulations

Pushing for safe consumption sites and safe supply to reduce overdose deaths

On Monday June 20th, Thomas Linner of the Manitoba Health Coalition, Arlene Last-Kolb Regional Director of Moms Stop the Harm and Winnipeg City Councillor Sherri Rollins were at the Manitoba Legislature to advocate for better measures to reduce deaths from drug overdoses, most particularly for safe consumption sites and for a safe supply, measures which can reduce overdose deaths.

Manitoba Liberal accomplishments

Examples of Manitoba Liberal accomplishments in the last three years Ensured that 2,000 Manitoba fishers were able to earn a living in 2020 (To see the full story click on this link ). Introduced a bill that includes retired teachers on the Pension Investment Board which governs their pension investments. Introduced amendments to ensure school aged children are included in childcare and early childhood education plans moving forward. Called for improvements in the management of the COVID pandemic: · We called for attention to personal care homes even before there was a single case in a personal care home. · We called for a rapid response team to address outbreaks in personal care homes months before the PCs acted. · We called for a science-based approach to preparing schools to improve ventilati...

The Gerrard Report

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