In The News

IN THE NEWS: Canada is claiming credit for tackling ghost gear, despite eliminating funding

MP Johns says he’s repeatedly questioned the program’s fate in the House and presented a public petition calling on the government to restore it. The coastal MP has also met with Fisheries and Ocean’s Minister Joanne Thompson to present ways to finance the successful program.

“It was one of the most effective ocean protection programs Canada’s ever created on plastic pollution and whale entanglements," MP Johns said.

“I’m getting nothing but crickets from them. They just let it collapse. It’s just so disappointing.”

IN THE NEWS: Feds ‘on track’ to connect every household to high-speed internet by 2030, as critics point to gaps in rural and Northern Canada

NDP MP Gord Johns may love connecting with his constituents, but, oddly enough, a lack of connectivity remains one of his riding’s most pressing issues.

“I got an email [recently] from a woman who said her husband had a heart attack and, while he was under cardiac arrest, he had to drive to a gas station because he couldn’t access the internet,” Johns (Courtenay–Alberni, B.C.) told The Hill Times in an interview. “These are the kind of stories I get all the time.”

“This isn’t about it being a luxury,” he continued. “It’s essential infrastructure, just like roads, clean water, and power.”

IN THE NEWS: Courtenay-Alberni MP looks back on 2025, forward to 2026

“Obviously it was challenging for the NDP and I’m certainly grateful to be re-elected and be sent back to Ottawa,” Johns said. “I’m just focusing on what I’ve always been doing, that’s working with people, working together and just continuing to make sure that voices of coastal and Island communities are heard in Ottawa.”

IN THE NEWS: UPDATE: Courtenay-Alberni MP Gord Johns comments on lifting tanker ban

“There’s a proposal that’s going to be talked about later this week. The Prime Minister is meeting in private with Danielle Smith, the Premier of Alberta. He is not consulting with the province of British Columbia. He is not consulting with First Nations to lift the tanker ban,” said Johns when addressing parliament.

IN THE NEWS: Coastal communities ‘running out of time’ without fisheries fund renewal, say opposition critics as DFO faces $544M in cuts

“We saw the Harper cuts to science investments in habitat protection and conservation, and we saw the stocks collapse,” Johns said. “We’re finally seeing wild salmon bounce back in certain areas; now’s not the time to take the foot off the gas.”

Alongside the lack of renewed funding for the Ghost Gear Program, which removed abandoned and derelict fishing gear and marine debris from coastal waters, Johns said the government is “basically blowing off coastal communities and the environment” in its latest budget.

However, Johns said those communities can’t wait until the next budget, or even a spring economic statement, given the March funding sunsets.

“Time is running out on these programs, and we need the government to come out in the next month and announce what their plans are,” Johns said.

IN THE NEWS: Johns prevents federal election

Johns said he did his job as a Member of Parliament, bringing his constituents voices to Ottawa instead of the other way around.

“I talked to every single mayor: 9 mayors in my riding, 3 regional district chairs, 17 elected chief counsellors – all of them were unanimous and they didn’t want the government to fall,” he said. “I did consultation. We’re being the adult in the room listening to our constituents who said right now is not the time to have an election.”

IN THE NEWS: Island MP tables bill on veteran, RCMP and civil servant pension benefits

“It’s an honour to introduce this bill today, just ahead of Remembrance Day next week, which seeks to eliminate the gold digger clause, which penalizes spouses who marry after the age of 60,” said Courtenay-Alberni MP Gord Johns as he introduced his private members’ bill on Nov. 7.

“My bill amends certain acts related to survivor pension benefits so that spouses of Canadian military, RCMP and federal civil servants who marry after age 60 are not punished for having found love later in life,” said Johns.

“Over 8,900 veteran spouses don’t get the pension of the veteran when they pass away, and 98 per cent of those that are impacted are women, and so I mean this is an unfair policy that’s in place that harms spouses of veterans and caregivers,” said Johns.

IN THE NEWS: Coulson praises MP for federal support

Port Alberni’s Coulson Aviation could be in line for a share of $257 million for aerial firefighting if the Federal Liberal’s budget passes.

Company owner Wayne Coulson credits the political support of Courtenay – Alberni MP Gord Johns and others.

“Gord‘s been pushing extremely hard on the federal government to pivot and change and provide support to the promises, and working with Josie Osborne and Minister Ravi Parmar he’s been amazing,” he said. “They’ve been back east talking about the wildfire problems in the province, and BC is really looking to increase their initial attack capability with large airplanes.”

Island MP wants day of remembrance for Canadian forces killed in peacetime

“We should not forget the risks members of our Armed Forces face, even in times of peace,” said MP Johns.

Since 1914, an estimated 2,000 Canadian Armed Forces members have died in non-combat roles in Canada.

“We must also remember veterans who have lost their lives as a result of post-traumatic stress disorder,” said Johns. Between, 2013 and 2024, at least 177 members of the Regular Force and 36 members of the Reserve Force died by suicide.

“This day will ensure we never forget the service and sacrifice of those who made it their lives’ work to protect Canada and uphold Canadian ideals,” said Johns.

IN THE NEWS: NDP MP Gord Johns raises pipeline project issue in House of Commons

“Coastal First Nations have been clear for decades: there is no social license for crude oil pipelines and tankers on the Great Bear Coast,” said Johns on October 6.

“They have built a conservation-based economy that creates jobs, supports communities, and protects globally significant ecosystems. The Prime Minister promised no province or Indigenous group would be forced into a project they do not support—this government must keep that promise.”

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