The Federal New Democratic Party’s pick is in for Grande Prairie, and she says she’s ready to advocate for GP’s families, particularly when it comes to the rising cost of living.
Jennifer Villebrun, a lifelong Grande Prairie resident, says it’s time for a change. She says over the past ten years, she’s continued to observe the same issues among the families who call the swan city home.
“The first time I ran for office, we were facing many of these same crises, and here we are a decade later, seeing them magnified,” she says.
Homebuying
Villebrun says living in Canada is simply “too expensive,” for the modern Canadian. She says she has seen the problem worsen, especially for young families and seniors.
“The main issue is living expenses,” she says. “Many families are worried because things are getting too expensive, and there’s fear about what the future holds. This is extra true of seniors and families with children who are facing the choice between paying for their utility bills or groceries.”
She adds that oftentimes, first-time homebuyers lack the support to step foot in the housing market, pointing to NDP policies that focus “directly” on helping young families get into their first home.
“ That’s often one of the challenges I hear from people when I talk to them is that they’re working, they make good money, but that ability to get a deposit, and get all of the things that are needed in order to get into housing, versus rent, is a big challenge still,” she says. “ We already have a system which we can use to do that, but to expand it so we can have low-interest, public-backed mortgages for families who are trying to make that transition.”
“We have a commitment to building over five hundred thousand units of affordable housing in areas that are facing drastic housing shortages, and also trying to focus on protecting rental units from corporate landlords whose primary focus is to increase rents.”
Tariffs
Villebrun says the country “must stand up” against American tariffs. She says while door knocking, consistently, Grande Prairie residents describe similar feelings regarding the pressures being placed on the Canadian economy.
“ I certainly feel a great sense of disappointment and frustration that one of our closest trading partners has taken this approach, and I think that when I talk to people, door-knocking, and around our community, people are really angry about that,” she says. “What I’m hearing is that people are very concerned about this, but they are willing to do what it takes to kind of respond to this.”
She says while the NDP supports “some sort of retaliatory tariff,” the focus must remain on maintaining a healthy trade relationship with international partners, seeking to put an end to tariff talks from both sides.
“ At the same time, we strongly would be negotiating to bring those tariffs off and see that as a short-term response, but more on a long-term front,” she says. “We have a Build Canadian, Buy Canadian plan, that is basically focused on building the industries that we have available in Canada, adding value-added services and processing.”
“ I just learned yesterday that the Peace Region is one of the largest honey-producing areas in all of North America, and so I thought that is a perfect example of an industry that we could continue to build value-added services around because it already exists here in our area.”
Healthcare
Villebrun describes healthcare, especially in the north, as an “obvious concern” for everyone. She says the NDP remains “strongly opposed” to any privatization in the Canadian healthcare system, opting for an “expansion of services” already available.
“It’s frustrating that it’s been something we have been talking about for as many years as we have,” she says. “ We are strongly opposed to any sort of privatization systems and want to basically see an expansion of the services that we already offer.”
“The NDP supports investments and programs that would aim to bring professionals into the north and help them establish practices in underserved communities.”
She adds that a historic lack of training opportunities available for prospective healthcare workers bears a significant amount of the blame when it comes to shortages in the Peace Region. She says educating students in the communities they will eventually work in is key to retaining physicians in the future.
“ One of the big challenges, as someone who grew up here, is that we don’t have enough training facilities that allow us to remain here and build our practices,” she says. “ When people leave the North, it’s hard to get them to come back just because they’ve built their lives in the area that they’re training.”
“ For me, that’s something that I would love to see is more opportunities for people to work here, get their education here, and then continue contributing to our community.”
