SIOUX LOOKOUT – On Monday, the Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for Ontario held its first public hearing in the Northwest to gauge the public’s response to the proposal of a new Kiiwetinoong-Mushkegowuk riding in the far north.
The proposed redistribution would also see the Kenora riding merge with the Thunder Bay- Rainy River riding and reduce the number of Northern Ontario seats in the House of Commons from 10 to nine.
The proposal has prompted opposition from a number of municipal governments, which have argued the decision would leave a gap in representation for a vast geographical area.
On Monday, the commission heard more concerted opposition from Sioux Lookout residents and regional leaders.
The Sioux Lookout hearing is one of many scheduled throughout the month, though most are being conducted virtually. Another was held Tuesday in Kenora, and a full list of hearings is available online.
As to why Sioux Lookout and Kenora were the only two in-person hearings held in Northwestern Ontario, Lynne Leitch, chair of the Ontario commission and an Ontario Superior Court judge, said the commission focused on areas most impacted by the proposal.
“We looked to where we could meet, where we thought we were making a number of changes, and we have decided to offer a significant [number] of remote meetings, which have been highly popular with the public thus far.”
The commission has received 850 written submissions and 800 requests to speak at its public meetings, she said.
“We have to consider all the submissions and the cumulative effect of them. Then we’ll go back and consider everything, and ultimately we will write our final report.”
During the meeting, Leitch heard negative feedback to the federal election redistribution proposal, with all eight citizens who spoke expressing opposition.
Lynne said feedback from the wider public has been more mixed.
“We have received some submissions that are very supportive and positive about changes," she said. "We also have received a number of submissions that are asking us to do what I might consider minor boundary adjustments. We also had submissions in relation to proposed names."
"And perhaps not surprisingly where we are making a significant change or reducing ridings, there has been quite a bit of reaction and people asking us to reconsider those decisions.”
In attendance was Marcus Powlowski, MP for Thunder-Bay-Rainy River, who has been quite vocal in his concerns about the proposed redistribution, signing a joint letter of opposition with all other Northern Ontario MPs.
Powlowski believes it would be challenging for a single MP to properly represent a riding that encompasses the district of Kenora, Rainy River, and Thunder Bay.
“The big thing is the size of the riding, [which] influences a whole bunch of things," he said, concluding an enlarged riding would “make it that much hard for you to talk to your MP."
While it's increasingly possible to connect remotely, Powlowski maintains that travelling to communities in the riding to interact directly with constituents is an essential part of the job - and one that's already a challenge in the north.
"I went to a big event in [Grassy Narrows] a few weeks ago," he said. "I had to get up at 7 a.m. ... I got home at 9 p.m."
"A lot of that time, there’s no cell phone coverage. There’s no internet. It’s basically downtime. If there was a vote [in the House of Commons], I would have to stop in Upsala."
With files from Leigh Nunan, TBT News
