Saskatoon West MP Brad Redekopp has written a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blaming his government’s policies for issues like crime, homelessness and addiction but a local professor says he is shifting blame to the wrong people.
Redekopp says he hears about issues of homelessness, drug abuse and crime all the time in the province and the federal government is to blame.
“This is very clearly a result of what Justin Trudeau and the NDP Liberal government have implemented in over the last nine years,” Redekopp said in an interview with Global News.
Redekopp aired his list of grievances in a letter to the prime minister July 25.
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He suggested the rising crime rate is due to policies of the federal government.
“So for crimes like firearms offences, trafficking drugs, these sorts of crimes, mandatory minimums went away, which means that when you were charged with those crimes, you often just get bail or you don’t end up in jail. And so by taking away the consequences of committing these crimes, they made it far easier for criminals to do this.”
But Prof. Derek Eisner, a sessional lecturer at Saskatoon’s St. Thomas More College, says the concerns in Redekopp’s letter are largely the responsibility of the province.
“In terms of overall scope, it would fall with the province. They make policies that affects affordable housing, homeless supports education, etc.,” Eisner said.
Eisner maintains there are provincial programs in place to handle these issues, but they may not be succeeding in their aim.
“I found it interesting is it was called the Housing Strategy for Saskatchewan, launched in 2011. And to quote the program is to encourage the housing sector to make the difference needed to build a strong housing environment. And so clearly that program has not reached its goal.”
Global News reached out to the federal government for comment but had not heard back by the time of publication.