Affordability, healthcare and childcare among issues discussed at Scarborough Southwest provincial candidates’ meeting

By JULIA SAWICKI

The candidates meeting for the Scarborough Southwest provincial byelection took place on Tuesday, Aug. 18, with candidates discussing issues raised by voters and answering submitted questions from the audience.

The event took place at the West Scarborough Neighbourhood Community Centre and was co-hosted by the Daily Bread Food Bank, Scarborough United Neighbourhoods and South Asian Women’s and Immigrants’ Services. Centre 55’s Executive Director Reza Khoshdel moderated the meeting, posing prepared questions as well as questions submitted by the audience.

Mark Bekkering of the Green Party, Ahsanul Hafiz of the Liberal Party, Fatima Shaban of the Ontario NDP and independent candidate Michael Perdelwitz were present at the event. Candidates from the Progressive Conservatives (Noor Tarun), New Blue Party (Chris Rees), and the Ontario Party (Gord Elliott) were not in attendance.

Among the issues discussed at the meeting were affordability, housing, child care and healthcare.

“I’m running tonight because the same issues keep coming up every election,” said Bekkering. “Ontario needs a new approach, one that prioritizes a more equitable future for all of Ontario and moves past partisan games.”

“We make decisions to connect climate action with affordability, with jobs, public health, and stronger communities instead of treating them as separate individual items and fail to recognize the relationships between them. We present realistic solutions that put people first,” he added.

Hafiz said cost of living is a key issue for him in this byelection.

“When I first came to Canada, I was able to go to schools, get a job. But some of those opportunities are not available today. Under the current Doug Ford (Progressive) Conservative government, the cost of living in Toronto has increased 82 per cent since 2018,” stated Hafiz in his opening speech

“The education system is broken, healthcare is failing, public safety is missing. Scarborough Southwest has had the same representation for the past eight years. Time for a change now, and Ontario liberals can make the change here in Scarborough Southwest. I have the experience of running, creating hundreds of jobs and creating opportunities. I want to bring that experience to Scarborough Southwest and be your voice at Queens Park,” he said.

Perdelwitz, was welcomed to make an opening and concluding speech at the meeting but did not take part in the debate portion or answer questions.

“I’m running in this byelection because I have lost the last 20 years of my life to the corrupt judicial system we have in this province,” said Perdelwitz in his opening speech.  

“Now when it comes to the cost of homes, prices are not coming down OK? Because people owe more than they’re worth. We have to accept that. We need a rail system where we can be anywhere in Southern Ontario in a reasonable time,” he added. “We have to accept that we cannot all squeeze into Toronto, and the only solution is a high-speed rail network. We need to expand GO Transit, so you can get around, and we all don’t have to fit here.”

Shaban cited her long connection to the community in her opening speech.

“I’ve lived in Scarborough Southwest for almost 20 years,” said Shaban. “I moved here with my mom as a teenager, and from a very young age I had to work very hard to help her make ends meet. And I think that shaped who I am. When I see something that needs to change, I can’t help but stand and do something about it”

“But there was a point in my life where I felt truly helpless, and that was when I watched my mom fall through the cracks of our healthcare system,” she added. “But when my son went to school and I saw how underfunded our classrooms were, I felt this isn’t fair. So I joined the school council and for the past three years, I’ve served as a treasurer of the school council at Regent Heights Public School.”

“My work is about accountability and making sure our finances are handled properly. Those are the skills I will bring to Queens Park,” she added.

During the debate and rebuttal sections, candidates covered a variety of topics, including the cost of living, affordable child care, decent work and employment rights, health care and climate action. Perdelwitz was not part of the panel discussing those issues, leaving the conversation to take place between Hafiz, Bekkering and Shaban.

The cost of living and affordability crisis were large talking points during the evening, with candidates sharing their thoughts and addressing concerns.

“Everyone in Scarborough deserves an education, a good job, a home that they can afford, a healthy life and a safe community,” said Hafiz.

“Ontario has legislative poverty, and we need to end it,” stated Bekkering, explaining the need to replace the current “complex array,” of social assistance programs, in favour of a province-wide guaranteed livable income, along with doubling ODSP and Ontario Works.

“Affordability is something we hear at almost every single door in the Scarborough Southwest. People are working hard and they’re still struggling to make ends meet,” said Shaban. She was also in favour of doubling ODSP and Ontario Works while increasing support for seniors.

All three candidates said they support working towards $10-a-day childcare through the Canada-Ontario early learning and child care agreement, as well as offering additional support for Scarborough families. 

“The cost of raising kids has risen far more than Ontario child benefits,” said Hafiz. “We need a meaningful increase to help families pay for their babysitting, for their clothes, their school supplies and food.”

“No parent should be spending a huge portion of their income just so they can go to work,” said Shaban “Affordability doesn’t mean much if you can’t find a space. That’s why we’ll create more public and not-for-profit childcare spaces and make sure that municipalities have the ability to create their own spaces as well.”

When discussing healthcare, candidates addressed various topics including the difficulty many people face connecting with a family doctor, an overburdened system and the importance of properly compensating trained professionals.

“Healthcare is one of the reasons that I ended up getting into politics in the first place,” said Shaban as she explained the NDP’s plan for healthcare, which includes increasing capacity in the Scarborough Health Network to adjust to area’s growing demand and population, establishing safe patient-to-staff ratios and clear pathways for internationally trained doctors and nurses to start working.

“Two million Ontarians don’t have a family doctor,” said Hafiz who also supported improving the process for allowing  international professionals to work in Ontario.

“If you are a family doctor in your home country, you should be a family doctor in Scarborough,” he said.

Bekkering said more healthcare professionals are needed across the province and city.

“We definitely have to recruit more doctors, nurses and personal support workers and pay them appropriately,” said Bekkering.

He described the Green Party’s stance on reducing pressure on the province’s healthcare by investing in mental health services, necessary housing, and reducing health impacts associated with the environment.

“I think we also need to stop and reverse the trend towards privatization,” said Bekkering.

The debate was followed by a speed yes-or-no segment, where Khoshdel posed a series of statements intended to make it clear to attendees and voters where candidates stood on each matter. The candidates would hold up a paddle indicating their answer but would not be allowed to respond in any other way to the questions.

Voting day for the Scarborough Southwest provincial byelection is Thursday, Sept. 3, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Advance polls will be open on Wednesday, Aug. 26; Thursday, Aug. 27; and Friday, Aug. 28, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Residents who wish to cast their vote ahead of time can do so by visiting the Scarborough Southwest Elections Office at 2685 Kingston Rd. (southwest corner of Brimley Road South) from Aug. 6 to Sept. 2 between the hours of 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

For more information on voting in the Scarborough Southwest provincial byelection, including how to vote by mail, please go to the Elections Ontario website at  https://www.elections.on.ca/en/voting-in-ontario/by-election.html