Kate White announces better services, more opportunities for people in the communities
March 26, 2021
Kate White joined Kluane candidate Dave Weir in Haines Junction to present the Yukon NDP’s platform for people in the Yukon’s communities.
“Everyone I meet here has a really good reason to love where they live,” said Yukon NDP Leader Kate White. “But living here also comes with a lot of challenges. Every service you need is harder to get: transportation, healthcare, schooling, internet.”
Again and again, people in the communities have been left out of government decisions,” said Kluane candidate Dave Weir. “Decisions are made in Whitehorse, by people who live in Whitehorse. And everyone else gets left out.”
“We’re going to offer something better for communities,” said White. “We want people to thrive in the Yukon, wherever they live. And the only way to do that is to make sure people have the services they need to stay in the place they love. We’re going to deliver better health services, more opportunities for young people, and a real seat at the table for people in the communities.”
The Yukon NDP’s offer to communities includes:
- Scheduled bus service: to help more people get to where they need safely, the Yukon NDP will work with communities, businesses and First Nations to introduce a scheduled bus service.
- Sport and art activities for kids: because youth in rural communities have a harder time participating in the sport and art activities they love, a Yukon NDP will support more coaches and mentors and increase funding to the Kids’ Recreation Fund.
- Making online education better: to give students who learn online a better education, a Yukon NDP will buy more computers and tablets for kids and train and support them as they continue to adapt to online learning.
- Hire and retain more healthcare providers: to deliver better, more accessible and more reliable health services to people in communities, the Yukon NDP will aggressively recruit healthcare providers and retain them with good incentives and conditions to stay.
- More options for mental health: to make it easier to access mental health services in communities, the Yukon NDP will recruit counsellors who are committed to stay for at least two years and expand existing health infrastructure to create spaces where people can access mental health care in person.
- Train more rural healthcare workers: because we know healthcare is better and cheaper when people aren’t waiting for an emergency to get the help they need, the Yukon NDP will partner with Yukon University to train community members to do preventative healthcare in communities.
- Better emergency fire and health services: we know that when rural volunteer firefighting teams and ambulance services are short the help they need, the results can be devastating. We’ll make sure a position exists in every office with direct responsibility for the recruitment, training and retention of qualified volunteer firefighters and establish a working group to determine how we can provide communities with the emergency health services they need.
- Fair pay for community librarians: we don’t think it’s right that community librarians make less than their counterparts in Whitehorse. The Yukon NDP will pay community librarians fairly so they can provide the important education and recreation services people want.
- Better, more affordable internet: to save people money and deliver better service, the Yukon NDP will make sure everyone who lives in an established community has access to a good internet plan, capped at $100/month.
- More job opportunities: to create good, family-supporting jobs in communities, the Yukon NDP will decentralize Yukon Government job opportunities.
- A community lens on all decisions: because we know the unique needs of communities are often overlooked, we’ll put a communities policy lens on all relevant government decisions and involve Yukoners from outside of Whitehorse on decisions that impact them.