Markdale –The fight to save Grey Gables is far from over, the President of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union says.
Despite clear public opposition to the scheme, a slim majority of Grey County councillors voted on June 29 to sell off the Grey Gables long-term care facility and force seniors to move into a privately managed home farther away in Durham.
“The Grey County councillors who voted in favour of this privatization scheme don’t have the final say,” Thomas said today. “The provincial government can still stop this scheme, and we’re going to help make sure that happens.
“There’s nothing worse than politicians who’ve dug in their heels and refuse to listen to their constituents,” he said. “Some Grey County councillors are going to pay for their stubbornness in the next election.
“I’m confident provincial politicians won’t be so quick to turn their backs on their communities – especially with an election coming up so soon.”
Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Bill Walker has already written to Health and Long-Term Care Minister Eric Hoskins outlining the extent to which the community opposes the privatization scheme.
OPSEU’s Thomas says he and the union-supported We Own It campaign will keep working to ensure that the thousands of Grey County residents are heard.
“This fight is far from over,” he says. “The provincial Liberals have vowed to ‘put patients first.’ We’re confident that they’ll want to ensure seniors in long-term care can stay in high-quality, publicly run facilities in their own communities, close to their loved ones.”
For more information: Warren (Smokey) Thomas, 613-329-1931