What Canadians expect from Ottawa this fall
Housing, cost of living, health: our journalists held out the microphone from sea to sea. The answers paint a country closer together than we think.
From Halifax to Whitehorse, we asked dozens of people the same question: what do you expect from Ottawa this fall? The answers paint a country more united than we think, but also priorities that shift from one region to the next.
Housing comes up everywhere. In Surrey as in Moncton, people talk about rents, waiting lists and adult children who no longer leave home. In the North, the words change: people talk first about the price of food and transportation.
What we hear, from one province to the next
“Housing is the only topic at dinner.” Gurpreet, Surrey
“We’d like Ottawa to remember who feeds the country.” Marie-Claire, Gravelbourg
“Out in the regions, health care is a question of hours on the road.” Sophie, Rimouski
“Here, a basket of groceries is a whole budget.” Aputi, Iqaluit
Everywhere, the same request comes back: to be heard. Many told us they feel decisions are made far from home, and that their reality remains poorly understood in the rest of the country.
“We’re more alike than we think. We just don’t talk to each other enough.”
Jean-Marc, Moncton (N.B.)
That’s the purpose of this report: to put these realities side by side, and to invite you to respond. Below, each comment shows its author’s province, with a one-click translation link.
Demonstration article for the MaplePress mock-up. The full text will be written and checked by the newsroom before the public launch.
Comments
6Reactions from 5 provinces and territories, read by the newsroom before publication.
Great piece. Out here in Surrey, housing is the only topic at dinner. My kids are 25 and 27 and still live with us.
Pareil à Gatineau. C’est fou de vivre exactement la même chose à l’autre bout du pays.
Écrivez-nous pour participer : nous préparons un volet sur les jeunes adultes qui restent chez leurs parents, de Surrey à Gatineau. Merci à vous deux.
Très bien fait. On se ressemble plus qu’on le pense. Et l’Atlantique, la prochaine fois, en premier ?
Good to see the whole country in one story. Out here, seeing a specialist can mean a full day on the road.
Content de voir le Nord dans le portrait. Si des lecteurs du Sud ont des questions sur la vie ici, je réponds volontiers.