Political round up March 16

Tuesday, 16 March 2021 15:35

Yukon political parties are gearing up for the 2021 territorial election. Here is what went down today.

NDP leader Kate white was on the digital campaign trail toady.

In an online press conference, the party leader presented the Patient's Bill of Rights.

White says, under an NDP government, everyone who wants a family doctor or nurse practitioner will have one.

“You’ll have the freedom to choose or change your family doctor when it’s not a good fit. You’ll have access to your own health care records from home, including you as a teammate in managing your own care.” Says White

White says if they put nurse practitioners in clinics, it will ease the burden on the healthcare system, but it is possible the territory could need new doctors.

White went on to say that the NDP will make sure all health care professionals are regulated. White says that currently psychologists don’t need certification in the territory and people can use the designation social worker without having professional credentials. She says that is a flaw of the system.

White also says that an NDP government will update the Putting People First report to reflect LGBTQ2S+ experiences and tackle structural racism in the health care system by improving training and adding “health care provider” into the Human Rights Act.

If re-elected, the Liberal party says they will create a new bilingual health centre.

A press release dated March 16^th says - A re-elected Yukon Liberal government will move forward on a Bilingual Health Centre, says Vuntut Gwitchin candidate Pauline Frost. The Bilingual Health Centre is a recommendation of the Putting People First health report and will improve care for Yukon’s francophone population. The recently introduced Liberal budget contains $1.5 million to begin work on the centre this year. The centre will provide another option for all Yukoners seeking health care. The vision for the centre in Whitehorse is a location that supports Yukoners’ health and wellness in both French and English. It aims to be the first-place people can go for health and wellness services and coordinates people’s health care to ensure continuity of care and ease of movement across the system.

Frost says “Our party is dedicated to equitable access to health care services for all Yukoners. We are committed to working with the Francophone community to address the health care needs of French-speaking Yukoners.”

Yukon Party announces new candidates

The Yukon Party has added some young blood to their roster.

The party announced four candidates who will be joining their team for the upcoming territorial election.

Charli Dagostin will run in the Klondike riding while Morgan Yuill will wave the party’s flag in the riding of Takhini-Kopper King. Cory Adams is the party’s candidate for Riverdale North and former Liberal Party candidate Eileen Melnychuk is returning to her Yukon Party roots as the Whitehorse Centre candidate.

Dagostin is a 25 year old third-year journeyman carpenter’s apprentice who was born in Yukon and raised in Dawson City in the traditional territory of the Trʼondëk Hwëchʼin. He graduated from Vanier Catholic Secondary School in Whitehorse and went on to play junior hockey in B.C. while attending the College of the Rockies in Cranbrook.

Yuill is 20 years old and training to be a pilot with Alkan Air. He graduated from F.H. Collins Secondary School in Whitehorse from the French Second Language Program and served as a Royal Canadian Air Cadet.

Adams immigrated to Canada in 1995 and moved to Yukon in 2001. He purchased a video store and ice cream shop in Porter Creek in 2004 and knows the trials and tribulations of running a small business. He was a Whitehorse City Council candidate in 2018.

Melnychuk was born in Whitehorse and raised in Watson Lake. She is committed to building a more prosperous, inclusive territory. Melnychuk is an educational assistant and she ran a communications and translation firm in Montreal for 10 years before returning to Yukon in 2006.

The Yukon Party still has two candidates to announce.

The territorial election will take place April 12th.