The MPP for Windsor West will take on a new subject as a critic for the NDP.
Lisa Gretzky, who is now Windsor-Essex's only NDP member of the Ontario Legislature, is now the party's critic for mental health and addictions. Interim Opposition Leader Peter Tabuns also named Gretzky the Deputy House Leader.
Gretzky said the need to help people who suffer from addiction and mental health challenges was only amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The past few years have been difficult, and so many across Ontario are dealing with new or worsening mental health and addiction challenges," said Gretzky in a media release. "People are coping with financial pressures, loneliness, loss and grief. Children are struggling with personality changes and anxiety from years of school disruptions."
Gretzky added that the opioid crisis in Windsor-Essex is getting worse, and that wait times for relief services are also getting longer.
"I’ll fight to make sure people can have their care needs met in their community because Ontarians deserve a mental health and addictions system that works," said Gretzky. "Mental health care and addictions services are health care, and so we need to make sure they are freely and quickly accessible to everyone."
During the previous PC mandate, Gretzky was the NDP critic for community and social services. Since first being elected to Queens Park in 2014, Gretzky has also served as the NDP critic for education, as well as community safety and correctional services.
