It is with great dismay that the New Democratic Party of Prince Edward Island notes that the provincial Conservative government has targeted yet another public service for destruction. This time they’re targeting our seniors. Instead of looking at long term care as a public good which is the responsibility of all Islanders, they are auctioning off the management of PEI’s newest long term care home to the highest bidder.
Health Minister Cory Deagle has already failed in his duty of care to provide family doctors for Islanders, and now he is expanding that failure in new and creative ways by ripping senior care away from the public sector – which is owned and controlled by all of us; and by handing it directly to a private company which will seek only to cut back care as far as they possibly can to maximize their profits.
It is a lie that private companies provide better service. A lie perpetuated by this Conservative government, as they chip away at the public services that we all depend on. These private companies exist for one reason and one reason only – to syphon public funds away from taxpayers and to line their own pockets.
Senior care is a public trust which should lay within the purview of the publicly managed health and wellness system of our Island – a system which this Conservative department, and Minister Deagle in particular, have proven once again that they are not up to protecting.
Minister Deagle has taken a jab at Islanders, saying we’re “afraid” of the word ‘private’. The only thing we’re afraid of, is a Conservative government that seems unwilling or unsuited to protect our precious public services. The NDP of PEI will seek to return long term care safely back to the control and management of ALL of us. And not to a few private corporations that seek to dismantle our hardwon public services piece by piece.