Communities in Northern Ontario may have a harder time accessing services through their federal representatives in the future, says Timmins-James Bay MP Charlie Angus.
Last week, the Federal Electoral Boundary Commission for Ontario released its final report. While it backtracked on creating a massive riding in the Far North, it still recommends reducing Northern Ontario to nine ridings from 10.
The proposed Kapuskasing-Timmins-Mushkegowuk riding would have a population of 93,948.
Angus said the changes will put communities that are already underserved at a disadvantage once again.
"This will limit their ability to get services, and that is really unfair," he said about remote communities, many of which are Indigenous or francophone. "We have to stretch what we already have."
Angus said that he is filing an appeal to the changes and that the proposed borders will put a strain on constituents’ ability to access services and help through his office.
“I think it’s really not acceptable that the commission decided that Northern Ontario is growing, but it’s not growing fast enough to maintain the representation it has,” said Angus. “We’re not asking for extra special treatment here, we’re just saying that we are an under-represented region, we are growing, but we can’t be compared to the massive growth in Southern Ontario.”
Angus also said that the expansion of the riding does not increase funding for staffing, or outreach for his team to connect in these communities.
“That’s a whole section of Northern Ontario, and that will require staffing, and we’re not provided with extra staffing to cover that,” said Angus. “Our staff deal with people’s (Employment Insurance), immigration forms, economic development, so this new section of the riding is going to put a lot of pressure on them.”
This can lead to limited service for the communities in the riding, says Angus.
“It diminishes the voice of Northern Ontario in the government and that’s really problematic,” said Angus. “We are under-serviced, our ridings are too big, and the commission ignored the consensus of people from one end of Northern Ontario to the other.”
MPs will be able to appeal the new boundaries until May, and the final decision is expected to be made on the electoral boundaries in September.
Angus said he will be filing an appeal and he’s been speaking with other representatives and community leaders across Northern Ontario. He encourages people to voice any concerns they have to the commission.
“We need this commission to respect the rights and interests of Northern Ontario,” said Angus.
Timmins Today/Local Journalism Initiative
