Report From Parliament Hill

Eric Melillo, MP, Kenora Riding

Dear Constituents

This week, I attended the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada convention in Toronto to meet with industry leaders and highlight the mining potential of our region.
Mining has a vital role in the economy of northern Ontario and Canada. The industry is responsible for nearly a quarter of our exports, provides paycheques to over 400,000 Canadians, and is one of the largest employers of Indigenous peoples in the country. 
At the convention, I met with officials from Western Copper and Gold about the positive impact their projects will have on Canada’s economy and what the government can do to support the industry. I also met with Australian Senator Susan McDonald to discuss the vital role of critical minerals to our shared prosperity and global security.
Later, I met with representatives from Agnico Eagle to discuss their operations and how they are working in partnership with First Nations and Inuit communities to advance economic reconciliation.
I also joined representatives from Red Lake to share the incredible potential of new opportunities for gold and lithium mining in northwestern Ontario.
A Conservative government will be a champion for Canadian mining and the workers that rely on it. We will speed up the permitting process to develop critical minerals and provide good jobs to Canadian workers. We will also support investments in skills training for people across the North to access more employment opportunities in the industry.
Conservatives will implement a First Nations Resource Charge, in addition to existing agreements, that will allow First Nations to directly collect revenue from resource projects on their lands. This will be an optional program to provide a direct economic benefit to First Nations and support their right to self-determination.
Working for You 
If you’re planning to be in Ottawa and are interested in attending Question Period or taking a tour of Parliament, please let me know and my office can help reserve Question Period and tour tickets. 
As always, if there is anything my office can assist you with, please call me at 807-223-2182 (Dryden) or 807-468-2170 (Kenora) or email me at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Eric Melillo
Member of Parliament
Kenora Riding