Post-Election, Will Leaders Act ON Food?
Posted: June 18, 2014
Categories: GoodFoodBites / News from Sustain Ontario
After a fiercely competitive election, Kathleen Wynne’s Liberals gained a majority in the Ontario legislature last Thursday, winning 58 seats. A surprise result for many Ontarians, the Liberals plan to re-introduce their budget on July 2nd after naming a new cabinet.
Vote ON Food
Our Vote ON Food & Farming campaign sought to inform voters about each party’s food and farming plans and to encourage MPP candidates to make food and farming a priority if elected. With over 3,400 page views and letters sent to MPP candidates in over a third of all Ontario ridings, we’re thankful for all the support we received to get the #VoteONFood message across this election. A big thank you to all of our supporters for making this happen!
If you think that the kind of work we did through the election is important, become a member of Sustain Ontario today.
What does this mean for food and farming in Ontario?
As the Liberals picked up most of their seats in the Greater Toronto Area and Progressive Conservatives won mostly rural ridings, some see the Liberal win as driving a deeper rural/urban divide in the province.
However, having introduced several food and farming policies in their pre-election budget and election platform, including a $400 million food processing fund and farmland protection plan, the party seems to be looking beyond its urban core.
What you can do now
The governing party provided a plan for each of our eleven Platform Report questions, including plans for economy, health, environment, education, and community. Now it’s time to work together to make sure that those ideas help to move forward healthy food and farming in Ontario.
Contact your MPPs! Whether you met your MPP at an all-candidates debate, sent a Vote ON Food letter to your candidates, or are reaching out for the first time, contact your MPP and ask if they will make food and farming a priority this term. Those handy resources are still useful post-election!
Fall municipal elections
Following the provincial election, Sustain Ontario and its members are preparing for the municipal elections that will take place across Ontario in October. To see how you can get involved, contact jamelia@sustainontario.ca.