Status of Women committee  I think that elected women can just make sure that.... We don't see women speaking on behalf of an entire group of women. I think it's incumbent upon the leaders of parties—and I think Mr. Scheer has done a very good of this—to make sure it's not just a woman speaking on “women's

Status of Women committee  I think the women who are better suited to politics are the ones who want to run. No, I don't think there are women who are necessarily better suited. However, I don't think you should be pushed, and that's why I think, coming back to the quota system, that's what we get. When th

Status of Women committee  —I do think it's really important that we seek out women who want to run, and I think the best kind of woman to be running is the one who is driven to and loves her community.

Status of Women committee  That's a tough one for me because my instinct is to say that government is never the answer. We should never be mandating anything, and it should be a grassroots, organic initiative. In this case, for me, it was a simple decision. I never thought I would run for elected office, t

Status of Women committee  That's a good question. I've stated quite clearly that I don't believe there were any systemic barriers to my running. I think it was just a matter of my making a decision and sticking to it. For me, personally, the biggest barrier would be that I was always questioning my comp

Status of Women committee  Yes, I'm unequivocally against the quota system. I think that, especially here, being elected to one of the highest offices here in the House of Commons or in the legislatures across the country, having a quota system goes against the very principle of democracy. People should be

Status of Women committee  This is one of my favourite questions. I think that, oftentimes when we're talking about the feminist movement, there is a certain type of woman who is personified in that movement, and I think that social justice and these buzzwords are thrown along with that. In the Conservat

Status of Women committee  I think it's very simple. There are Conservative people in the country, and they deserve representation. For me in Alberta, there's been a direct incentive by the party leader of the UCP, Jason Kenney, to have more women running, but that was by no means a propping up. I think t

Status of Women committee  Absolutely not. When you're looking at getting involved, as I said, if you want a seat at the table, pull up a chair. For me personally, some of my biggest supporters have been men. Rachel's here today and she's one of my biggest mentors, but at the end of the day, I also have Ja

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for having me here today to provide my perspective on the barriers women face in politics here in Canada. This is a topic that impacts me on a personal level, and I feel honoured to be able to share some of my experiences and thoughts in relation to this t