TORONTO, ON – Seniors living in long-term care lost out on legislation that would have finally brought in vital minimum care standards because the Premier decided it was more important to have a Throne Speech that did little other than rehash old promises, said CUPE Ontario President Fred Hahn at Queen’s Park.
“Today’s speech was little more than a list of their top ten hits and it failed to improve voter confidence in her government,” said Hahn. “This cynical attempt to change the channel on her government’s unpopularity is a perfect example of why voters no longer trust the Ontario Liberals to act in our best interest.”
“We were finally close to winning legislation that would have ensured all seniors living in long-term care were guaranteed a minimum of four hours of daily hands-on care. The Premier chose to kill that Bill so that she could bring in a throne speech to try and get people to like her again – that’s shameful,” said Candace Rennick, Secretary-Treasurer of CUPE Ontario and a former long-term care worker. “Now our seniors are back to square one and voters just aren’t buying what she’s selling anymore.”
“The people of Ontario are sick of this Liberal government that has ignored them for years and is now trying to buy their votes with vague promises,” said Hahn. “After 15 years of their government people are really struggling. It seems like there’s no question that the Liberals time is up. Now we need to focus on electing a government that is committed to improving people’s lives and investing in the programs and services that really help make our lives easier.”
“We will continue to fight to make sure minimum cares standards for our seniors is at the top of that agenda,” said Rennick. “We will not give up until our vulnerable seniors get the quality of care they need and deserve.”
CUPE is Ontario’s community union, with more than 260,000 members providing quality public services we all rely on, in every part of the province, every day. CUPE Ontario members are proud to work in social services, health care, municipalities, school boards, universities and airlines.
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For more information, contact: Sarah Jordison, CUPE Communications, 416-578-5638 www.cupe.on.ca
