By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab, Member of Parliament for Halifax West
Since September 2021, I’ve had the privilege of representing you both here at home and in Parliament. I want to thank you for sharing your priorities and concerns with me over the last few years, as it has allowed me to be an even stronger voice for our community in Ottawa. I’ve never stopped coming to your doors and have attended thousands of community gatherings to listen to you and witness firsthand your challenges, successes, and pride.
This winter, despite the cold and ice, I’ve been knocking on doors to check in with residents and to distribute Canadian flags and pins. To everyone I’ve spoken with, thank you for letting me know what’s important to you and your hopes for our next Prime Minister. It’s been incredibly heartening to see the groundswell of Canadian pride and to feel your support. For those I haven’t yet connected with, please contact me by phone, email, or through the survey in my last newsletter.
I also want to share some updates on the important progress we’ve made recently:
TAKING CARE OF OUR KIDS
Federal funding is helping to create more than 100 new child care spaces in Halifax West—on top of the 260+ spaces already created or under construction in our community. We are also providing $12m to enhance school food programming at Nova Scotia’s public schools, ensuring students can concentrate in class and families can save time and money on their kids’ meals.
BETTER HEALTH, MORE SAVINGS
We just hit a major milestone for the Canadian Dental Care Program: over 40,000 Nova Scotians have now received dental care under the program. That represents hundreds of dollars of savings per patient—a truly transformative impact!
TACKLING HOMELESSNESS
No one wants to see people sleeping rough in our city. To prevent and reduce homelessness, we must provide the appropriate resources to our community partners. I’m proud to say we’re doing that through $14m in new funding for HRM organizations providing outreach, shelter, and support.
CREATING OPPORTUNITY
Young people deserve more chances to learn valuable skills and kickstart their careers. We’re creating those opportunities in Halifax West by supporting our trade unions and NSCC with their training programs and funding the YWCA’s work to create volunteering and personal development opportunities for over 100 local youth.
As the next election approaches, I ask for your support to continue to represent you and to deliver for our communities.
