Everyday, I talk to your friends and neighbours who are struggling under the challenges of an affordability crisis. Inflation is ravaging households, especially the costs of things that you have to buy: groceries, insurance, electricity.
These stories range from the heartbreaking—pay for food or rent?—to the irritating—the bottle of moisturizer that’s shrinkflationed 40%. But in every case, we are at the end of our ropes.
I’m telling the government that life is not okay and you’re not okay.
First of all, wages haven’t kept up with the cost of everything increasing. On October 1, five provinces increased their minimum wages, including conservative-governed Ontario and Saskatchewan. The government hasn’t increased minimum wage in the last six years. It’s uniquely cruel in Canada, even among conservative governments.
Secondly, the government has deliberately made things even more expensive. The government is going to increase your cost of auto insurance by 15% or more. Electricity prices peaked at three times higher than when the UCP government was elected in 2019. On both of these things, the government has the power to make your life just a little better by reducing prices.
Just these two items cost you hundreds of dollars every year. It’s relentless.
And then there’s the price of groceries. It’s not just the sticker shock, but the shrinkflation and the replacement of good quality ingredients with lower quality.
The government could be helping you with all these costs, insults, and offenses. But they are too focused on their own extreme agenda to pay attention to the daily affordability crisis we all face.
I understand what you’re going through, and I want to help. Please reach out to my office with your ideas on how we can get inflation under control.
MLA – Calgary Elbow Samir Kayande proudly serves the following Communities: Altadore, Bel-Aire , Britannia, Elbow Park, Elboya, Erlton, Garrison Green, Garrison Woods, Glamorgan, Lincoln Park, Lower Mount Royal, Marda Loop, Mayfair, Meadowlark Park, Mount Royal, North Glenmore Park, Parkhill, Rideau Park, River Park, Roxboro, South Calgary, Upper Mount Royal, Windsor Park
