Election fever seems to be in the air again and in the first of a series of interviews with the candidates, Cortes Currents talked with Jessica Wegg the Green Party candidate for North Island-Powell River (NIPR).
“We have a chance now to show the world that we will not follow the trend of electing conservative right wing governments out of fear because we’re told that things are bad. We know that things are bad in some ways, but things are amazing and wonderful in so many other ways,” she exclaimed.
“If we just have our knee jerk reaction and say, ‘the last government was Liberal, they didn’t work. Let’s go over to the other side and give this Conservative government a try,’ we’re never going to advance the ball. We’re just going to keep hitting it back and forth. What we need is a way through this mess. That is with each other, that is by voting with our hearts and knowing what is right, what we value, using our brains to look at the world around us and see what is happening and ask ourselves, what’s the best way that I can try to make it through this?”
“Who’s the best person to stand up for what I believe in, to represent me in Ottawa, and that’s the Greens. We have known this is coming. We’ve been shouting it from the rooftops, trying to get attention and now it’s unavoidable. It’s here, so I would encourage people to vote Green.”
“I would encourage people to not vote from a place of fear or desperation. There are other options. You don’t have to pick just red or blue. There are other colours to choose from in this country and seriously, give a thought to what that could mean to have Greens in Parliament who are able to really hold the balance of power, and hold the larger parties to account. “
Cortes Currents: Tell me about the political situation in Ottawa right now, and your perspective on that.
Jessica Wegg: “I think that it was shrewd of Mr. Trudeau to prorogue Parliament, although it wasn’t a surprising move. It’s certainly permissible under the procedural rules to do that. He saw the writing on the wall and knew that he could not possibly survive another confidence vote.”
“It’s important that we have another election as soon as possible, especially with Mr. Trump going into office on Monday, he will become the President of the United States again. We need to have a secure, solid government in place to respond to whatever may come from that direction.”
Cortes Currents: What have you been hearing from North Island-Powell River in terms of the election and in terms of the Green Party?
Jessica Wegg: “I’ve heard mixed responses from people in the North Island-Powell River. I think people are nervous about a Conservative becoming our Member of Parliament. It’s very clear the Conservatives have their eye on NIPR (North Island-Powell River) as a riding they want to win in. I think people are nervous about splitting the vote, which is what they’re always nervous about.”
“They want to vote Green, but they’re afraid that they will take too much support from the NDP and we’ll get stuck with a Conservative. It’s a legitimate concern. I’m not going to say that it’s not. I do think, though, that it can be addressed by having faith in yourself, having faith in what you stand up for, in what you believe in.”
“What I would say is don’t split the vote, add to the vote. If you’re nervous that your Green vote will take away from what the NDP needs to win, then find two new voters to support Green with you. Add to the number of people who turn up to vote when the election takes place. It doesn’t change the math that way. It adds to the support the Greens receive.”
Cortes Currents: If you’re elected as our MP, what are some specific policies or areas of concern you’d want to see addressed?
Jessica Wegg: “If the Green Party was elected the biggest concern for me, and it touches on every area of our lives, is the climate. We need to have it first and foremost in our minds when we’re thinking about any policy going forward, when we’re talking about regulating other institutions that might not even seem like they’re related to the issue, but it’s it’s always an issue.”
“Fresh in my mind right now are the fires that are are raging in Los Angeles. I have dear friends who have lost their home. At first they didn’t have to leave, then they had some time to leave and then they had to basically run away from the fires in their home – all in the same day. We know that, for example, last year was the most expensive year on record in Canada for ensuring climate related claims. We’re footing the bill for these disasters that (fossil fuel) corporations are causing and they know they’re causing. They just don’t care because they’re making money.”
“That calculus has to change. We have to put climate first so that we can put people first, so that we can make sure that there is a healthy place for people to live, that people are safe in their homes. Right now the cost of the climate crisis is getting stuck on our shoulders. Not only are we having to breathe smoky air in the summer times, worry about floods and other weather/ climate related disasters, our insurance premiums are going up because insurance companies are having to ensure riskier and riskier years with these climate catastrophes. We have to hold the corporations to account for what they’re actually doing.”
Sleeping on a couch – photo by Eden, Janine and Jim via Flickr (CC By 2.0)
“The housing crisis is still a problem. People can’t afford homes. Families are couch surfing because they can’t afford a place to live. We can’t have private equity running our housing markets. We can’t have banks so stringently running everything. Banks need to be regulated in a way that benefits the people who are using them and not the people who run the banks.”
Cortes Currents: What about redistribution of wealth with the rich getting richer all the time, and the middle class disappearing?
Jessica Wegg: “Well, you just put your finger on it, didn’t you? There shouldn’t be such thing as a billionaire. You’ve seen the meme sometimes on social media. If you get to a billion dollars you get a medal that says congratulations, you’ve won capitalism. There’s no reason for people to have so much concentration of wealth at the top, and the rest of us are struggling paycheque to paycheque to live our lives.”
“Another massive concern is the drug crisis, the poison drug supply. There has to be a better way to deal with it and support people and their families through a crisis that was created by corporations who are looking for a way to make more money.”
“It all comes down to community. How can we lift each other up, strengthen each other and move through this life that we have together in a way that helps your neighbour, helps your family, and, helps yourself. We don’t have to live in a way that profits the people at the top. We can live in abundance and prosperity by supporting each other.”
“There are better systems. This one’s not working. It’s only working for the people at the very top. That has to change.”
Cortes Currents: Did you have anything more you would like to say?
Jessica Wegg: “I’m just looking forward to talking to people and having conversations with people about what their concerns are, and what they want to see in Ottawa.”
“It’s important to remember that a minority government is a really strong government. It’s even stronger when you’ve got a few voices that have to be heard in order for the government to function. That’s what we can do as Greens.”
We can be those few voices who have to be listened to because we’re not part of the crowd. We’re not singing the same chant as everyone else. If things need to get done, you need to go through the Greens to get them done. That’s an ideal situation.
Cortes Currents: How can people contact you?
Jessica Wegg: My email is jessica.wegg@greenparty.ca. My Instagram is jessica wegg nipr. I’d love to hear from you, get in touch.
Links of Interest:
- Green Party of Canada website
- Green Party of Canada Facebook Page
- Green Party of Canada Youtube Channel
- Green Party of Canada • Parti vert du Canada – Instagram
Top image credit: Empty parliament seats in Ottawa – Photo by Daniel Thornton via Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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