What skills, professional experience, and personal attributes make you an effective representative for your riding in the Legislature?
I am running because I believe I am the best person to be the MLA for Ladysmith Oceanside. I bring the type of skills and abilities that are required for this amazing and complex responsibility.

But I am also running because I care deeply about my community and about the future of all of us here in BC. I have two children that I am determined, like all parents, to ensure a future where they and all children can thrive.

As a school trustee and as President of the BCSTA, I learned the importance skill of effective collaboration and consensus building. During my time with the BCSTA I was tasked with helping to create a policy framework for reconciliation, the Syeyutsus Framework, that could be used by all 60 school districts.

I am proud of that work and the fact that it is being used in all districts today. Bringing people together to create solutions is what I did and what I will continue to do as the MLA.

---

Cost of living challenges continue to mount, with everyday items and activities becoming increasingly unaffordable. What specific examples of this have you seen in the riding, and what areas would you advocate for to bring relief to residents?
I talk to people everyday and they tell me that they love their community, but many of them worry that its getting harder and harder to make ends meet.

Global inflation and high interest rates are hiking costs. And corporate gouging and real estate speculators are making things worse.

My constituents tell me that they are really happy about some of the actions that the NDP government has taken, like reducing ICBC rates by $500 a year and then freezing them, and eliminating MSP Premiums, saving families $1,800/year.

Some folks have told me about how having their child care fees cut in half is helping them with their monthly budget. But we need to do more.

I know that continuing to lower costs for people is critical, and that’s why I’m excited about all the things we will continue to do to make life more affordable, like the commitment for a $1000 rebate every year for families, expansion of $10 a day childcare and strengthening protections for consumers.

This will put more money into the pockets of my constituents.

---

The need for additional housing stock in the region is widely recognized, with various approaches proposed or underway to build more homes, faster, which in turn should reduce costs for renters and home buyers. What specific housing needs have you identified in the riding, and how would you address those needs as the riding’s MLA?
Affordable housing is one of the top issues I hear about when talking to people here in our riding. We simply need more affordable housing and we need it quickly.

We need more purpose-built rentals, more multi-unit developments like townhouses, duplexes and triplexes, and we especially need more affordable housing for seniors.

I support the BCNDP Housing Action Plan that will create 300,000 more homes that middle-class people can actually afford.

The plan includes the elimination of regulations that have prevented the construction of small multi-unit developments like townhouses, duplexes and triplexes, which will kickstart the construction of hundreds of thousands of homes.

The plan also includes using public land to build more middle-class housing and making it easier to build and rent out secondary/basement suites.

---

Local advocacy groups are calling for immediate investment in primary healthcare services across the central and northern Island regions, including additional capital investments for Nanaimo Regional General Hospital. What steps will you take to improve access to healthcare in the riding, particularly with regard to primary care physicians and access to specialists?
When I talk to people in my community the number one issue is healthcare, especially concerns about access to a family doctor. I understand – my family also doesn’t have a family doctor.

The BC NDP is taking action to train and hire more doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers than ever before.

There is a new intensive care unit at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, a new cardiac unit under construction, and a commitment to build a new patient tower, as well as the Flowerstone Family Health Clinic that has a team of 23 health professionals.

But there is more to do. I’m running for the BCNDP because we are committed to improving healthcare for everyone, not cutting funding to healthcare, like John Rustad said he would do

Editor’s note: Candidate responses were limited to 200 words. Any responses exceeding this limit are trimmed as noted. Answers are published otherwise unedited by NanaimoNewsNOW, with the exception of paragraph spacing to aid readability.