Manitoba Election 2016

Andrew Swan - Minto

1. Why did you decide to run in the 2016 Manitoba election?

It’s simple – being the MLA for Minto is a great job! I have been proud to serve as the MLA for Minto for 12 years. I have met thousands of diverse West End residents and had the chance to help many of them out. As an experienced lawyer, I know how to listen, to advocate, to negotiate, and to fight for people’s rights when needed. As the only Minto candidate with children in the Winnipeg School Division, families know my commitment to public education (and see me supporting our schools all the time!) and I want to continue to make sure our schools prepare our young people for great careers right here in Manitoba. I also want to continue to make sure Manitobans don’t have to relive the reckless cuts that hurt so many families in the 1990’s.

2. What experience will you bring to complement your role as MLA?

First, as an active and engaged MLA for Minto since 2004, I have a deep understanding of the issues in Winnipeg’s West End. Before being elected, I practiced law for fourteen years at a large law firm. For five years I served as the Justice Minister and Attorney-General, and led balanced measures to improve the effectiveness of the criminal justice system, reducing crime severity across Manitoba by 39%. My experience as a lawyer has been equally helpful in finding the right ways to assist people, providing the skills to advocate for others and, frankly, providing me with the ability not to take the uglier side of politics too personally.

3. Is there anything in particular you would like to change in our province? In your electoral division?

I am a strong proponent of the Block By Block program, now operating in the North End through my work as Minister of Justice. Based on a violent-reduction project in Glasgow, Scotland, and pioneered in Canada in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, it brings together police, education staff, health care providers, social workers, and agencies to find solutions for families in difficulty. When a family is in crisis, we need to get assistance to them right away. The time has come for this approach to be brought to the West End and elsewhere – I know it will result in positive outcomes by reduced police involvement, fewer apprehensions by child welfare, fewer emergency room visits, and better school attendance. Manitobans know that community-based programs are effective and save money in the long run; the cuts proposed by the Conservatives put these types of initiatives on the chopping block. That’s a risk we cannot afford.

4. What key issue(s) / topic(s) would like to stand for in your role as MLA, and why is it important to you?

We have made steady progress on issues West End families care about: better health care closer to home, quality public education, fair working conditions and a better minimum wage, affordable university and college tuition, and support for excellent community organizations like Spence Neighbourhood Association and the Daniel McIntyre St. Matthews Community Association. If I had to pick one, it would be continuing to be a champion for not only quality K-12 education but also accessible and affordable post-secondary options. It means the world to West End families.

5. What is one thing in particular that you value about the electoral division that you wish to represent?

Diversity! Winnipeg’s West End has always been a place where people have come to build a new life – over time, that has meant immigration from many different parts of the world. A walk or drive up and down Ellice or Sargent Avenue makes that very clear. I learn something new every day from the people I have had the honour to represent for the last 12 years. My colleagues in the Legislature only wish they had the ethnic stores and restaurants I enjoy in the West End!

6. Do you have any other comments regarding your candidacy?

People in the West End, and elsewhere, know that I am committed to serve this province for the long term. Many of the projects I pioneered took time to come to fruition, and some are still in development. I had the courage to bring in amendments to the Human Rights Code to protect transgender individuals and those who are socially disadvantaged. I had the foresight to introduce Canada’s first standalone restorative justice law, and Manitoba’s first mental health court, to advance better ways to make offenders deal with their actions and change their behaviour. I had the compassion to fight for better federal laws to stop criminalizing victims of sexual exploitation, and instead target the johns, pimps, and drug dealers that impact the West End. And I’m just getting started.