The office of Bay of Quinte MP Ryan Williams sent the following press release saying he is looking forward to working with newly elected local officials.
Belleville, ON – “I would like to extend my congratulations to all the Mayors and Councillors-elect on
their victories last night,” said Ryan Williams, Member of Parliament for the Bay of Quinte.“I look forward to working with all of you to address the biggest issues facing our region. Solving these
issues will take collaboration and cooperation across all levels of government, partisanship, and
ideology. I have a great respect for my predecessor as Member of Parliament for the Bay of Quinte, and
Belleville’s Mayor-Elect Neil Ellis, and I know we will work well together to help our city and our region. I
have a great relationship with Quinte West Mayor Jim Harrison and Prince Edward County Mayor Steve
Ferguson and I look forward to continuing our common goal of making Bay of Quinte the best place to
live.”MP Williams says a top priority needs to be housing. “We are short 6,000 homes versus current demand,
and we need to double our yearly building rate to create enough housing. There are over 300 families on
the waitlist for military housing at CFB Trenton, and housing price increases have priced many Canadian
Armed Forces members and their families out of the market.”MP Williams also says the focus should be on Canadians who are suffering from a cost-of-living crisis.
“Thanks to inflation levels not seen in 30 years, and rapidly rising interest rates, 46% of Canadians are
less than $200 away from insolvency. Fifty-two per cent find it hard to pay for food for their families, and
more than one-third find it hard to pay for housing. Families across the Bay of Quinte are having to
choose between heating and eating. Seniors on fixed incomes are choosing between rent and
medication.”Healthcare is a top priority according to MP Williams. He says the Federal government can work with the
provinces on increased skills training and immigrant accreditation for internationally trained doctors,
nurses, and nurse practitioners. “We need to ensure we are doing everything we can do to get those that
need a primary healthcare provider, a doctor or nurse practitioner.”“Homelessness has doubled in Belleville, and with the rising cost of living, more and more residents are
facing the prospect of becoming homeless. While it only takes one step to become homeless, it takes
three steps to get out. We need to build transitional housing to help get our residents out of
homelessness and build truly affordable housing to help prevent families squeezed by inflating costs of
living from becoming homeless. We need to look at more secondary suites and coach houses that may
keep people in their homes during high inflation and interest rates.”“I want to finally thank everyone who put their name in for public service, and who has served in
municipal politics in the last several years. My door is always open to meet and talk about how we find
ways to work together and help solve the major issues facing all residents of the Bay of Quinte. I look
forward to hearing and meeting with all successful candidates over the coming months,” concluded MP
Williams.
