Cariboo Prince George MP Todd Doherty said he expects 2017 will be just as busy as 2016.
“At the very least I hope people have seen that we’ve lived up to our commitment to be more present and visible and back in the riding every weekend,” Doherty said from his constituency office in Prince George.”
Of the four private member bills he’s tabled so far, Doherty said he is most proud of his Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder bill which is slated for debate on Feb. 9, 2017.
“It is something I am very passionate about and making sure there is legislation behind it,” Doherty said.
The enactment of the bill would require the Minister of Health to convene a conference with the Minister of National Defence, the Minister of Veterans Affairs, provincial and territorial government representatives responsible for health and representatives of the medical community and patients’ groups for the purpose of developing a comprehensive federal framework to address the challenges of recognizing the symptoms and providing timely diagnosis and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Doherty said being named to the Conservatives’ softwood lumber task force and appointed as Official Opposition critic for Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard has kept him very busy.
But not too busy to stand up in the House Of Commons repeatedly to push for jobs and opportunities in his riding.
“Not just necessary investments, but investments that help us capture any opportunities that come our way in the future is important,” Doherty said.
In 2017 Doherty said he will continue to challenge himself to do better, both in Ottawa and back in the riding.
“Are there events that we missed that we should be at for example. These are all things we are reviewing as an office to figure out how we can better serve our constituents in our riding.”
Doherty said he would be spending the holidays in the riding, split between Prince George and Williams Lake.
Happy to be able to catch up with family and friends, he also said he wished he was already back in Ottawa holding the government accountable for its many promises.
“I am curious to see how the Liberals will move forward and who will be sitting across the floor. They have had some troubling times in the last couple of months,” he said.
