Opioid crisis, Trump presidency on prime minister’s and big-city mayors’ radar

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This article was published 19/01/2017 (2646 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Dealing with the deadly opioid crisis and keeping the border open for trade with the U.S. emerged as key issues Friday during a meeting between the prime minister and the country’s big-city mayors.

Mayor Brian Bowman said in an interview Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to consider the federal government’s involvement in developing a national strategy to deal with the opioid crisis.

“Getting the municipalities and the provincial governments… and the federal government around the table so that we can really (have) less ad hoc measures across the country, dealing with something that increasingly is an issue of tremendous concern in each of our cities.”

Bowman and other mayors of the country’s largest cities met in Ottawa for a day-long meeting, primarily to promote the pre-budget submission of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, which is advocating for greater funding for affordable housing, public transit and green infrastructure.

Bowman said he and other mayors met privately with Trudeau after he made his opening remarks. The afternoon sessions were to involve meeting with policy experts on infrastructure, affordable housing, the opioid situation, and focusing on trade under the new Trump administration.

The FCM issued a statement following the meeting with the prime minister, urging Trudeau to use the federal government’s next budget to launch a new era of public transit and to tackle Canada’s housing affordability crisis head-on.

“This government clearly appreciates that we can’t build livable, globally-competitive cities on top of a housing crisis,” Don Iveson, Edmonton mayor and chair of FCM’s Big-City Mayors’ Caucus (BCMC), said in the statement.

The mayors want the federal government to invest $12.6 billion in housing solutions over eight years, directing money already earmarked for the Social Infrastructure Fund.

While Donald Trump was being sworn in as the 45th president of the United States Friday morning, Bowman said trade with that country also dominated discussions.

“The Prime Minister indicated there is a role for mayors to play in working with the federal government and provincial governments to influence U.S. lawmakers and decision-makers to try to keep the border open for trade,” Bowman said. “That was something I was very pleased to hear the Prime Minister acknowledge and invite the mayors to be part of those lobbying efforts because it does impact jobs in each of our cities.”

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca