Labrador MP Yvonne Jones has announced she is taking a break from politics after receiving her second cancer diagnosis.
In an announcement Thursday, Jones said her breast cancer returned in September, 12 years after she was first diagnosed with the disease. It was diagnosed early through a regular mammogram, she said, and encouraged all women who are of age to get checked for cancer.
She said she will be taking a leave of absence to undergo surgery and treatment and will assist her staff however possible.
Jones said the leave of absence will last “at least a couple of months” and she will reassess her circumstances after that, but she has the option of participating in Parliament virtually.
In an interview with CBC’s Power & Politics, she said she’s doing well and her prognosis looks good.
“I do regular mammography screening, it’s a priority for me, and because of that there was early detection, as it was in my previous bout with breast cancer,” said Jones.
“Because of that early detection, I know that I can fight this, and with treatment and surgery, I will do fine at the end.”
Jones, 54, has had a long career in politics working as vocal advocate for Labrador, first as mayor of her hometown of Mary’s Harbour and then in provincial politics, being elected MHA for Cartwright-L’Anse au Clair as an Independent in 1996.
At 27 years old, Jones was the youngest female MHA in the province’s history when she was first elected, a distinction she held until Charlene Johnson was elected in 2003.
“It seems like it was just yesterday when I was making my way up the steps at Confederation Building for the first time,” she said earlier this year.
“I look back on it now and I say, ‘Where have the time gone?'”
She joined the provincial Liberal Party in 1999 and during her time as an MHA served as a cabinet minister and leader of the Official Opposition.
In March 2013, Jones announced her intention to run in a byelection for the federal riding of Labrador after MP Peter Penashue quit amid a scandal around financing for his 2011 election campaign.
She won the byelection a few months later, besting then Conservative candidate Penashue, and has held the federal seat ever since.
During an event in May, Jones said she’s fought for a lot of issues over the years and has delivered for her constituents in Labrador.
“Determination and never giving up a fight on something you believe in is what makes you want to get up every morning and go back to work and tackle that same issue over and over again until you succeed,” she said.
Previous cancer diagnosis
Jones has dealt with cancer in the past, being diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2010 while she was leader of the provincial Liberals.
While undergoing treatment in 2010, she pushed to have the recommended age for breast cancer screening lowered to include women in their 40s, a change that was later made in the 2012 provincial budget.
But Jones’s cancer fight weakened her immune system and she resigned from her position as provincial Liberal leader in August 2011 — just two months before that year’s provincial election.
She said she wasn’t healthy enough to lead the party through an election campaign but was clear that she wasn’t retiring from politics.
“I am sad and I am a little angry. I am feeling cheated by cancer from doing something that I have dreamed of doing my entire political life,” she said at the time.
Jones was re-elected as MHA for Cartwright-L’Anse au Clair in 2011, taking more than 71 per cent of the vote.
She set the record as Newfoundland and Labrador’s longest-sitting female MHA in 2012, a record that still stands, before resigning her position to run federally.
‘Not going anywhere yet’
Having battled cancer before, Jones said she has a better idea now of what’s to come, but said it was still nerve-racking when she found out her cancer had returned.
“This time around, I’ve been down that road, I know of what to expect, I understand it more, I’ve learned a lot, but with that also comes a tremendous amount of stress and anxiety in knowing what’s coming up next,” she said.
Jones also said she’s “not going anywhere yet.”
“This is a bump in the road, I’ve had many challenges in my life and in my political career, this is just one more challenge.
“There are men and women across our country every day who battle cancer, who battle tremendous sickness and illness and rise up at the end of the day and continue to live a very full life. I intend to do just that and I have every intention of running in the next election.”
Moe is set to speak in the city of Yorkton about affordability measures this morning before travelling to the nearby village of Theodore for an event with the local Saskatchewan Party candidate.
NDP Leader Carla Beck doesn’t have any events scheduled, though several party candidates are to hold press conferences.
On Thursday, Moe promised a directive banning “biological boys” from using school changing rooms with “biological girls” if re-elected.
The NDP said the Saskatchewan Party was punching down on vulnerable children.
Election day is Oct. 28.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 18, 2024.
REGINA – Saskatchewan Party Leader Scott Moe is promising a directive banning “biological boys” from using school changing rooms with “biological girls” if re-elected, a move the NDP’s Carla Beck says weaponizes vulnerable kids.
Moe made the pledge Thursday at a campaign stop in Regina. He said it was in response to a complaint that two biological males had changed for gym class with girls at a school in southeast Saskatchewan.
He said the ban would be his first order of business if he’s voted again as premier on Oct. 28.
It was not previously included in his party’s campaign platform document.
“I’ll be very clear, there will be a directive that would come from the minister of education that would say that biological boys will not be in the change room with biological girls,” Moe said.
He added school divisions should already have change room policies, but a provincial directive would ensure all have the rule in place.
Asked about the rights of gender-diverse youth, Moe said other children also have rights.
“What about the rights of all the other girls that are changing in that very change room? They have rights as well,” he said, followed by cheers and claps.
The complaint was made at a school with the Prairie Valley School Division. The division said in a statement it doesn’t comment on specific situations that could jeopardize student privacy and safety.
“We believe all students should have the opportunity to learn and grow in a safe and welcoming learning environment,” it said.
“Our policies and procedures align with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code.”
Asked about Moe’s proposal, Beck said it would make vulnerable kids more vulnerable.
Moe is desperate to stoke fear and division after having a bad night during Wednesday’s televised leaders’ debate, she said.
“Saskatchewan people, when we’re at our best, are people that come together and deliver results, not divisive, ugly politics like we’ve seen time and again from Scott Moe and the Sask. Party,” Beck said.
“If you see leaders holding so much power choosing to punch down on vulnerable kids, that tells you everything you need to know about them.”
Beck said voters have more pressing education issues on their minds, including the need for smaller classrooms, more teaching staff and increased supports for students.
People also want better health care and to be able to afford gas and groceries, she added.
“We don’t have to agree to understand Saskatchewan people deserve better,” Beck said.
The Saskatchewan Party government passed legislation last year that requires parents consent to children under 16 using different names or pronouns at school.
The law has faced backlash from some LGBTQ+ advocates, who argue it violates Charter rights and could cause teachers to out or misgender children.
Beck has said if elected her party would repeal that legislation.
Heather Kuttai, a former commissioner with the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission who resigned last year in protest of the law, said Moe is trying to sway right-wing voters.
She said a change room directive would put more pressure on teachers who already don’t have enough educational support.
“It sounds like desperation to me,” she said.
“It sounds like Scott Moe is nervous about the election and is turning to homophobic and transphobic rhetoric to appeal to far-right voters.
“It’s divisive politics, which is a shame.”
She said she worries about the future of gender-affirming care in a province that once led in human rights.
“We’re the kind of people who dig each other out of snowbanks and not spew hatred about each other,” she said. “At least that’s what I want to still believe.”
Also Thursday, two former Saskatchewan Party government members announced they’re endorsing Beck — Mark Docherty, who retired last year and was a Speaker, and Glen Hart, who retired in 2020.
Ian Hanna, a speech writer and senior political adviser to former Saskatchewan Party premier Brad Wall, also endorsed Beck.
Earlier in the campaign, Beck received support from former Speaker Randy Weekes, who quit the Saskatchewan Party earlier this year after accusing caucus members of bullying.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
REGINA – Saskatchewan‘s provincial election is on Oct. 28. Here’s a look at some of the campaign promises made by the two major parties:
Saskatchewan Party
— Continue withholding federal carbon levy payments to Ottawa on natural gas until the end of 2025.
— Reduce personal income tax rates over four years; a family of four would save $3,400.
— Double the Active Families Benefit to $300 per child per year and the benefit for children with disabilities to $400 a year.
— Direct all school divisions to ban “biological boys” from girls’ change rooms in schools.
— Increase the First-Time Homebuyers Tax Credit to $15,000 from $10,000.
— Reintroduce the Home Renovation Tax Credit, allowing homeowners to claim up to $4,000 in renovation costs on their income taxes; seniors could claim up to $5,000.
— Extend coverage for insulin pumps and diabetes supplies to seniors and young adults
— Provide a 50 per cent refundable tax credit — up to $10,000 — to help cover the cost of a first fertility treatment.
— Hire 100 new municipal officers and 70 more officers with the Saskatchewan Marshals Service.
— Amend legislation to provide police with more authority to address intoxication, vandalism and disturbances on public property.
— Platform cost of $1.2 billion, with deficits in the first three years and a small surplus in 2027.
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NDP
— Pause the 15-cent-a-litre gas tax for six months, saving an average family about $350.
— Remove the provincial sales tax from children’s clothes and ready-to-eat grocery items like rotisserie chickens and granola bars.
— Pass legislation to limit how often and how much landlords can raise rent.
— Repeal the law that requires parental consent when children under 16 want to change their names or pronouns at school.
— Launch a provincewide school nutrition program.
— Build more schools and reduce classroom sizes.
— Hire 800 front-line health-care workers in areas most in need.
— Launch an accountability commission to investigate cost overruns for government projects.
— Scrap the marshals service.
— Hire 100 Mounties and expand detox services.
— Platform cost of $3.5 billion, with small deficits in the first three years and a small surplus in the fourth year.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct .17, 2024.
