Action Group's visit to Legislature prompts comment from Premier and media attention
Quick Links |
The group was introduced in the House by both Minister Harry Bloy and Opposition Critic Nicholas Simons.
During Question Period opposition MLA's challenged the Minister once again on his government's failure to adequately fund Community Living BC. Read the transcript here (scroll down to 1425). MLA's told the stories of families across BC who had come forward. While the Minister continued to defend CLBC funding, the Premier was interviewed after the session and made some hopeful comments about the government's commitment to people with developmental disabilities. Quote from Premier Christy Clark (From today's Times Colonist article): "It's challenging in government to try to manage all the issues, all the time," she said. "But one of the priorities -the absolute priority we have -is to support families." ... "Families that are dealing with children or adults that have a special need are already under an incredible amount of strain, and government shouldn't be adding to that with uncertainty," she said. "So we are working as hard as we can, as fast as we can, to get through those issues." Both the Premier and the families were interviewed by reporters after the legislative session. Global TV (near the beginning), Burnaby Now and the Vancouver Sun all reported on the issue. THANK YOU!Thank you to all of the family members who have come forward and bravely taken their stories to the media, their MLA and the Premier. We also thank the families and advocates who visited the legislature, many of whom made the trip from Vancouver. The efforts of our fellow members of the Community Living Action Group - Moms on the Move, the BC Coalition of People with Disabilities, Family Net and BCGEU have been invaluable in bringing attention to this important issue. How you can help:Contact the Minister of Social Development, Harry Bloy. Minister Harry Bloy has expressed a desire to hear from families who are not getting the supports they need. You can contact the Minister directly by email: harry.bloy.mla@leg.bc.ca Phone: 250 356-7750 Whether your MLA is NDP or Liberal, it is important that they hear from their constituents about this important issue. If you believe families should be getting the supports they so desperately need, call or email your MLA. Write to or call the opposition critic for Community Living BC, MLA Nicholas Simons. Since the House began sitting, Opposition MLAs have kept up pressure in the Legislature, challenging the Minister of Social Development Harry Bloy to increase funding to Community Living BC. In order to keep up the pressure, they want to hear from families who are waiting for services, whose services have been cut back, or who have been told there are no services available to them. You can email Nicholas Simons at nicholas.simons.mla@leg.bc.ca or call his office at 250-387-3655. You can reach him toll-free by calling Enquiry BC and asking for the Official Opposition Caucus: 1-800-663-7867 Write to the Premier, Christy Clark. Christy Clark has promised to "put families first." The Premier needs to know that families who support family members with a disability must be included in her family agenda. You can contact Christy Clark online here: http://www.christyclark.ca/premierchristyclark/contact.php *You can phone the Premier's office at 250 387-1715 or fax to 250 387-0087 Go public with your story. BCACL has been speaking with media who want to talk to families who are having difficulty accessing vital services. If you are willing to tell your story to your local media, BCACL can help connect you. Please call or email Danielle at BCACL at dkelliher@bcacl.org or 604-777-9100 ext. 527. Tweet or Facebook your Message. If you're on Twitter, include #bcpoli and @christyclarkbc in your tweet, or retweet BCACL's messages. Check out BCACL's Twitter page here, for up-to-date messages: http://twitter.com/#!/BCACL. If you're on Facebook, visit our page and "like" us to see updates in your newsfeed. You can also either send us a message or post on our wall. |