BY BOB ZIMMER
Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP
With summer just around the corner, I hope that all of you will have the chance to get outside and enjoy all that our region has to offer.
It has been a very busy spring session in the House of Commons and whether attending virtually or in person, I have continued to hold the Liberal government accountable to you.
As an Opposition MP, I do not decide on the government’s policies, how your taxes are spent, or what new laws and regulations are introduced. However, being in a minority Parliament has meant that I have been able to work with Parliamentary colleagues to put pressure on the government to achieve important results for Canadians. Some of the issues that my Conservative colleagues and I have been championing in Parliament over the past few months include:
- Formally censuring the Liberal Defence Minister for his mishandling of military sexual misconduct.
- Successfully ordering the Trudeau government to turn over documents regarding the transfer of dangerous viruses from the Winnipeg National Microbiology Laboratory to the Wuhan Institute of Virology and the subsequent firing of two government scientists. The Liberals refused the order and have made it clear that they will continue the cover-up of a possible national security breach.
- Securing the creation of a special Canada-U.S. committee to stabilize the economic relationship between Canada and the United States.
- Fighting against the Liberals’ attempts to regulate the internet through their censorship Bill C-10. We were able to slow down the government’s efforts to ram through this legislation and will continue to stand firmly against it.
- Holding the Liberals accountable for their disastrous 2021 federal budget and exposing billions in wasteful government spending.
- Identifying flaws in the various financial support programs announced by the federal government and successfully pressuring the Liberals to make important changes to these programs, including CERB, CEWS, EI, and small business support programs.
As a Member of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources, I have also been focused on pushing the Liberal government to be a champion for our natural resources sector. This includes questioning International Trade Minister Mary Ng about renewing a softwood lumber agreement for our forestry sector and urging Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Regan to fight for Canadian workers who depend on our natural resources sector to provide for their families.
In my role as Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Outdoor Caucus, I have also been working hard to raise awareness of the importance of British Columbia’s public fishery to our fishing families and coastal communities. I continue to call on Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan to work with our angling experts to allow access to our public fishery while also ensuring stocks of concern are protected.
With the end of this session of Parliament, I want to once again thank all of you for entrusting me to be your voice in Ottawa.
As always, I welcome you to get in touch with me if you need help navigating federal government programs or have any issues you would like to discuss.