The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
It's a fact that national support for the New Democratic Party has more than doubled since the 2000 federal election. It's also true that the party has lost the Churchill Riding just once in the past 25 years and that incumbent MP Bev Desjarlais remains perhaps the riding's most visible candidate for the upcoming election, now just two weeks away. A casual observer might look at the facts and earmark Desjarlais a shoo-in for a third term, but the popular MP isn't about to call in this campaign. "We're cautiously optimistic. We're going into this campaign as if we're just one vote ahead," said Desjarlais, in Flin Flon on Friday for a dinner and dance hosted by the local NDP association. "It's looking good now, but as Paul Martin now knows, elections can change in the course of a day or a week," she said, referring to polls showing the prime minister may lose his job to Conservative Leader Stephen Harper. "We're working hard to make sure that we find out what issues people have and are able to address those concerns." Topping that list of concerns is health care, in Desjarlais' view. As her party's health critic, the MP has repeatedly opposed any privatization of the health care system, which she feels is a key difference between the NDP and its opponents. "Both the Liberals and the Conservatives have given a clear indication that they plan on allowing more private, for-profit health care," said the Thompson resident. "That means increased cost to the Canadian taxpayer because both of them are saying, 'It's okay to do that as long as the taxpayer pays.' Well, that means more dollars." See 'Registry' P.# Con't from P.# As she campaigns throughout one of the country's largest federal ridings, Desjarlais continues to hear of many other issues, such as crumbling infrastructure, inadequate First Nations housing, and one of the Liberals' more unpopular initiatives, the gun registry. "Surprisingly enough, the gun registry still comes out as an issue, and I'm quite sure people in the riding know I'm adamantly opposed to the registry and will continue to maintain that opposition," said the MP. "I don't believe that's where the dollars should be spent as far as crime prevention or security. I think those dollars can be better spent elsewhere." A matter coming up with less frequency has been Desjarlais' opposition to same-sex marriage legislation, a position that goes against her party. "It's a tough issue for those on both sides," she said. "There are people that feel very passionately on both sides. My issue is with changing the definition of marriage." Taxes are an issue, too, and Desjarlais said New Democrats want "a sound and a fair tax system for all those people from the low to middle incomes who really cover the cost of the nation through their tax dollars." With national polls showing the NDP hovering around 20 per cent support Ñ more than double the 8.5 per cent it received in 2000 Ñ Desjarlais is optimistic about the party's future, particularly as it becomes more well known. "Traditionally, there were two parties in Canada," she said. "There are a lot of regions in the country that have a hard time getting over that. It takes time for people to change that way of thinking and to realize that there is an alternative, and the alternative is the New Democratic Party." As a New Democrat, Desjarlais naturally wants to see Jack Layton, the party's prime ministerial candidate, move to 24 Sussex Drive. And as a member of the left-wing party, she's uncomfortable about the possibility of the Conservatives gaining power, as polls show they may. "One of the things you often hear from people is, there's a fear of having the Conservatives in power," she said. "I think people haven't forgotten about (former prime minister Brian) Mulroney and they also haven't forgotten that the Conservatives really are Reform/Alliance, and so there is that fear of the Conservatives."
