With two weeks to go in the 2025 federal election race, New Democrats have unveiled their plan to strengthen Northern Ontario.
Sault Ste. Marie—Algoma candidate Laura Mayer said the focus is on health care, food costs and infrastructure.
You can read more in the following news release issued Monday:
New Democrats have unveiled their platform for Northern Ontario – with a focus on fixing health care issues, cutting food costs, and building the infrastructure Northerners need. The NDP is the only party to release a platform focused on the issues that affect people in our region.
Sault Ste. Marie—Algoma candidate Laura Mayer states that the last few years have been tough for too many people. “It’s not just inflation and tariffs, either. It’s harder to get a family doctor. It’s harder to put nutritious meals on the table. And it’s harder to access services that will make a difference in your life. I want to help change that — New Democrats want to change that,” says Mayer.
The NDP Plan for Northern Ontario includes specific measures to improve access to health care, such as:
- investing in regional medical schools to support rural, remote, and underserved communities;
- training more doctors and incentivizing them to stay in the North by providing grants and fair wages to doctors who commit to Northern practices; streamlining the credentialing for internationally trained doctors; and
- fully implementing Jordan’s Principle to ensure that First Nations children have access to quality health care.
The NDP plan also focuses on making food more affordable at your local grocers. The measures include fixing the Nutrition North program to ensure subsidies go to the people purchasing food, not corporations; making pricing transparent to consumers; implementing price caps on essential food staples; and investing in local food programs that support traditional harvesting.
Northern infrastructure is a key part of the NDP plan. This includes twinning key highways like the Trans Canada to make them safer; creating national standards for transport safety and training; and building federal infrastructure through the NDP’s Build Canadian, Buy Canadian plan focused on using Canadian materials and labour, including Canadian steel.
“Northerners are strong and resilient, but too often we see that Ottawa doesn’t pay serious attention to the issues that concern us,” said Mayer. “This election, we are being told there are two choices: Conservative cuts and Americanisation or Liberal excuses and inaction. Sault Ste. Marie—Algoma has a better choice: New Democrats who stand in your corner to fight for you and have a proven record of delivering results for Canadians such as dental care, pharmacare, childcare and so much more.”
The Elections Canada list of candidates for Sault Ste. Marie-Algoma confirmed April 9 also includes:
- Robyn Kiki Eshkibok, Green Party of Canada
- Terry Sheehan, Liberal Party of Canada
- Hugh Stevenson, Conservative Party of Canada
- James Collins, Christian Heritage Party of Canada
The federal election is set for April 28.