Mungall Demands Funding for Derailed BC Court System

MLA Michelle Mungall says British Columbia’s justice system is starving to death because of a severe lack of funding for Provincial Courts. In Yesterday’s Question Period, Mungall asked both the Solicitor General and the Minister of Finance to account for the chronic underfunding and increased cuts in this year’s Budget.

“Is this the standard that the Minister of Finance plans to keep, or will he commit today to properly fund the criminal justice system, clear up the backlog and get B.C. courts working again?” demanded Mungall.

Rather than respond to the question, the Solicitor General and the Minister of Finance deferred to the absent Attorney General.

“I was disappointed in the Minister of Finance. He has responsibility for the Budget, and I asked a budget question. The people of BC deserve better than someone who is so out of touch that he can’t respond to questions on his own budget,” says Mungall.

“Criminal cases have been waiting more than two years to be heard because of case backlog and court delays,” adds Mungall, “ I think about the lack of closure for those involved in these cases that have been thrown out.”

Today a Quadra Island family is feeling the bitter result of a court case being dismissed due to delays. A man charged with shooting and killing the family’s puppy walked out of court today when charges were dropped after the Judge said it was taking too long to bring the case to trial.

Mungall and her NDP colleagues will continue to stand up to protect the people of British Columbia and our justice system.

To view the web clip click here.

Related Story: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/02/16/bc-puppy-death-charges-stayed.html

MLA’s Food Systems Report Ready to Launch

Creston- Monday February 21 at 4:00pm, MLA Michelle Mungall will be releasing the report, Kootenay Lake Food Systems. This event brings the MLA’s work on local agriculture full circle since it is being held at the Creston Valley Chamber of Commerce, the same venue where Mungall heard from 50 local farmers on the need to build our regional food system.

“The forum was the beginning of this whole process. So much information came out of that dialogue that it deserved a detailed look into this region’s current food network and ways to improve it,” says Mungall.

The Report was prepared by University of British Columbia Master of Arts student, Paris Marshall Smith during her internship at the MLA’s Nelson-Creston Community Office. Over the summer months, Marshall Smith met with agricultural producers and distributors throughout the Kootenay Lake region to identify the infrastructure needed to get locally grown food to local tables.

“It has been extremely gratifying to work with such an amazing group of people in the Kootenays,” says Marshall Smith, “There is a wealth of experience and a strong commitment to support local food production that really defines this region as a whole.”

Copies of the report will be available at the launch and can thereafter be downloaded from www.michellemungall.ca

NHL and Olympian Scott Niedermeyer shows support for MLA’s rally to Keep Jumbo Wild.

Nelson: This Saturday February 5th at 12pm in Central School gym, Scott Niedermayer will be showing his support to Keep Jumbo Wild and you can too!

The two-time hockey Olympic gold medalist and Stanley Cup winner has emailed Mungall to express his support for the rally. Niedermeyer has been a vocal advocate for keeping Jumbo wild, and Kootenay Ice team members are following in his footsteps. They will be reading Scott’s letter while joining host Mungall onstage at the rally this Saturday. Also joining her will be Spencer Chandra Herbert, NDP Opposition Critic for Tourism, Culture & Arts, The Raging Grannies and more.

In November, Mungall spoke to the Minister for Natural Resource Operations and he said that he would be making a decision regarding Jumbo “in the next few months.” Should he give the Master Development Agreement the green light, it won’t be long before bulldozers make their way to this important grizzly bear habitat.

With this decision looming Mungall says the BC Liberal Minister “needs to hear the voice of Kootenay residents, a voice that has emphatically said they want to keep Jumbo Wild.”

“The time to stop the Jumbo Glacier Resort is now. Let’s make sure the Minister is clear that we don’t want this development in our backcountry, and that we won’t stand for it.”

Join us this Saturday in Central School Gym at 12 pm and help send a clear strong message to Keep Jumbo Wild.
For more information, please contact Michelle Mungall’s MLA office 250.354.5944 toll-free 1-877-388-4498 michelle.mungall.mla@leg.bc.ca