Conservative Solutions: Local Hands, Local Solutions to protect Okanagan Lake

Tom Kmiec is the Member of Parliament for Calgary- Shepard and serves as Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons. He arrived in Montreal as a four-year-old in 1985, after his father left Poland and the family waited two years to be reunited. He learned French and English by watching television, went to Polish school on Saturdays, and spent early mornings with his mom while she cleaned restaurant kitchens before opening. In this episode of Finding Solutions, we talk about how that story shaped a career in public policy. Tom has worked as a policy advisor in Alberta and for federal ministers in Ottawa. He explains why humility matters when governments design programs, and why he returns to Hernando de Soto’s The Mystery of Capital and the idea of the “fatal conceit.” Rules written for good reasons can end up doing the opposite over time. Equalization is a good example. We also go inside the work of the Deputy Speaker: welcoming foreign delegations, keeping the House running, and the massive rebuild of the Parliament buildings. Tom explains where the project stands, why Canadians should care about it, and how it will make the House more accessible to the public. From there the conversation turns to Alberta. Tom lays out the history of separation talk, why he is a pro-Canada voice, and what his constituents say when they ask for a better deal from Ottawa. He explains equalization in plain language and makes the case for removing the cap. He also shares his view on why Canada is slow to approve and reimburse new cancer drugs, and why a cost-per-life-year formula is an incomplete measure. We close on a lighter note, with Tom’s Yiddish proverbs and why he uses them as his hook in the House. In this conversation * Leaving communist Poland and growing up in Quebec * Learning English and French through television * Moving to Alberta and why it felt like a “can-do” place * Policy work in Alberta and Ottawa * Humility in government and the “fatal conceit” * Property rights and why clear ownership builds confidence * The role of the Deputy Speaker * Rebuilding Parliament: scope, cost and accountability * Alberta, separation and a better deal inside Canada * Equalization explained * Access to new drugs for rare diseases * Yiddish proverbs in the House of Commons Finding Solutions is hosted by Dan Albas MP, Member of Parliament for Okanagan Lake West - South Kelowna. Weekly reports and constituency information: https://danalbasmp.ca 24/7 toll-free: 1-800-665-8711

Finding Solutions with Dan Albas MP, Member of Parliament for Okanagan Lake West - South Kelowna. Jeff Kibble, MP for Cowichan, Malahat, Langford and a 28-year Royal Canadian Navy veteran, joins Dan to talk defence procurement, Canadian Armed Forces readiness, and Bill C-235, legislation aimed at reducing repeated trauma for families of victims of the most heinous crimes. Guest bio Jeff Kibble, MP for Cowichan, Malahat, Langford (B.C.). Elected 2025 after 28 years in the Royal Canadian Navy (overseas deployments; commanded HMCS Oriole). Standing Committee on National Defence; Conservative Shadow Minister for Defence Procurement. Sponsor of Bill C-235, Respecting Families of Murdered and Brutalized Persons Act. * https://jeffkibble.ca/ * https://x.com/JeffKibbleCML * Bill: https://www.parl.ca/legisinfo/en/bill/45-1/c-235

Guest Info: Kathy Bernard is the founder and president of the Save Your Skin Foundation, a national patient-led organization dedicated to skin cancer education, prevention, advocacy, and patient support. After receiving a metastatic malignant melanoma diagnosis in 2003 and navigating a complex healthcare journey, she built a national network to ensure no patient faces cancer alone.Website: saveyourskin.ca Episode Notes: When Kathy Bernard was diagnosed with metastatic malignant melanoma in 2003, she faced a reality familiar to far too many Canadians: a delayed diagnosis, limited public information, and a complex healthcare system with no clear roadmap for patients. After a year of treatments, she learned the cancer had spread to her lungs. Her path forward required leaving her home, family, and province to enter a clinical trial at Alberta’s Cross Cancer Institute. That clinical trial saved her life. Driven by her experience navigating out-of-province care, financial burdens, and systemic hurdles, Kathy vowed that no Canadian facing skin cancer would ever have to go through it alone. In 2006, she founded the Save Your Skin Foundation, starting with a personal 1-800 phone line that has since grown into a national support system providing education, advocacy, clinician mentoring, and direct financial support for patients. In this episode of Finding Solutions, Dan Albas sits down with Kathy to discuss the realities of patient self-advocacy, the “postal code lottery” in Canadian drug coverage and clinical trial access, healthcare equity in remote communities, and practical sun safety habits for everyone enjoying an active outdoor lifestyle in the Okanagan.

This episode is part of our ongoing Healthcare Solutions series. Dan Albas MP is joined by Dr. John Bell, senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and an internationally recognized leader in cancer immunotherapy. Over decades of work, Dr. Bell has helped advance research that uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer, and he has played a central role in building BioCanRx, Canada’s immunotherapy network. In this conversation, Dan and Dr. Bell discuss: • What still gets a career researcher out of bed excited about cancer science • How viruses, the immune system, and cancer research came together • Immunotherapy explained simply: a living therapy with memory • Hot and cold tumours, and efforts to help more patients respond • Why BioCanRx was created to move Canadian discoveries into clinical testing • CAR T-cell therapy made in Canada, access, cost, and treating patients closer to home • Collaboration across hospitals, researchers, charities, and industry • Policy, regulation, and the economic case for investing in life sciences • A hopeful, practical message for families facing a serious diagnosis Dr. Bell’s core point is straightforward: breakthroughs matter, but Canadians do better when researchers, clinicians, regulators, and governments work toward the same goal, getting effective treatments to patients faster, here at home. If this episode is useful, share it with someone who follows health innovation or is supporting a loved one through cancer care. Need to connect? https://danalbasmp.ca 24/7 toll-free: 1-800-665-8711 Constituency services: https://danalbasmp.ca/constituency-services/ Signup link for the weekly MP report: https://danalbasmp.ca/subscribe-to-the-mp-report/

On this edition of Okanagan Stories and Solutions, I sat down with West Kelowna Mayor Gord Milsom. With municipal elections coming this fall and Gord stepping down after eight years as mayor, this conversation looks past day-to-day headlines at how a community actually gets built, how local leaders navigate crisis, and what it means to put service above self. Watch our full conversation in the video above. From Kitchen Tables to City Hall Gord did not set out to run for office. He grew up in Dorval, Quebec, where his father served on city council. After earning a commerce degree, he built a 35-year career as a personal financial planner, helping local families budget, manage debt, and buy their first homes. When Gord and his wife moved their young kids from Vancouver to the Okanagan in the 1980s, he brought that service mindset into Rotary, minor hockey, and the food bank. Those decades across a desk taught him how to listen without judgment before proposing solutions, a skill that carried straight into local government. The 51-49 Vote and Building From Scratch In 2007, when the regional district could no longer administer the fast-growing west side, residents faced a referendum: join Kelowna across the lake, or incorporate on their own. The community chose independence by the narrowest of margins: 51% to 49%. Gord stepped forward to serve on that inaugural council. What the first mayor and six councillors inherited was daunting: 28,000 residents, one temporary administrator, no city hall, and a patchwork of rural roads and water systems never built to urban standards. As Gord recalls, the first few years were spent stacking master plans just to catch up: ”There was so many plans that we had to have a plan to manage those plans.” What We Cover in This Episode: Leading Through McDougall Creek: Roughly 10,000 residents evacuated and about 200 homes lost, with zero lives lost. Gord explains why operations must stay with trained fire and emergency personnel, while the mayor’s job is presence, supporting evacuated families, and steady communication. Partnership with Westbank First Nation: Why regular staff meetings and council-to-council respect with Chief Robert Louie and council matter for communities that share borders, roads, and services for generations. Winning Six More RCMP Officers: How West Kelowna, Peachland, WFN, our MLA, and I joined forces to end a decade-long shortfall in provincial rural policing. Unfinished Business: Why 70,000 west-side residents need a redundant power line placed underground, the push for Highway 97 interchanges at Boucherie and Westlake, and the need for local mental health facilities. Advice for Future Leaders: Gord’s practical counsel for anyone running this fall: listen to the community, support volunteers, and keep a balanced approach. Dan Albas is the Member of Parliament for Okanagan Lake West - South Kelowna. For weekly reports, constituency assistance, or to reach our office, visit [danalbasmp.ca](https://danalbasmp.ca) or call toll-free anytime at 1-800-665-8711.