On Parliament Hill

Last week, the Conservative Party of Canada held its bi-annual policy convention. More than three thousand delegates (10 from each riding in Canada) met for the three-day (virtual) event to debate and choose the policies our party will put forward in the next election.

Ridings across Canada put forward hundreds of policy proposals. These were then voted on by party members, narrowing down the number of policy proposals that would make it to convention to 34.

I am proud to say that out of hundreds of proposals, not one but two policies originating in Provencher made the final cut. Both were passed with wide margins of support at convention, and both are reflective of our riding.

Statistics Canada has, once again, named Steinbach as the most generous city in Canada for charitable giving (with many other communities in our riding well above the national average).

The first policy was based on my 2016 Private Members Bill C-239: The fairness in charitable giving act.

The policy proposal, in a nutshell, is that donations to a political party should not receive a more favourable tax break than donations to a registered charity.

Charities play a critical role in Canadian society and we believe Canadians should be incentivized to support them by increasing the tax incentive to do so.

The policy reads as follows:

“The Conservative Party recognizes that Canadian Charities provide essential services to our communities and they are well equipped to enhance the wellbeing of our communities. As such, we believe that charitable donations should not receive a less favourable treatment than political donations.”

We are also a riding with a high number of foster and adoptive families.

The second policy calls for a future Conservative Government to put in place a national adoption strategy.

Canada has some 78,000 kids in the child welfare system. Nearly half of these children will become permanent wards of the State, never experiencing the love and stability that comes from having a forever family. Of these, nearly half will experience issues with attachment or other mental health issues and many will also become involved with the criminal justice system.

The human, social and financial costs of kids in care cost taxpayers billions of dollars per year in both direct and indirect costs.

While child welfare is primarily a provincial jurisdiction, there is a role for the federal government to play.

A child’s greatest need is a stable family to provide them with security, a sense of identity and above all else, love.The measures in this policy can help to promote and facilitate domestic adoption and help kids in care find their forever family.

The policy reads as follows:

“A Conservative Government will create a National Adoption Strategy including an awareness campaign to promote domestic adoption along with working with the provinces to ensure equal access to adoption for all children. We believe domestic adoption should be tax refundable and support the use of tax incentives for those adopting.”

I was so pleased to see the wide support for our policies, and I am so proud of our team and the great people here in Provencher.

There’s a reason we put these policies forward.

As MP my job is to be the voice for my constituents and these policies are reflective of the generosity of spirit that runs deep here in Provencher.

I am so excited for when Canada’s Conservatives form government and enact these compassionate, common-sense policies that will benefit so many Canadian families.