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Senator speaks about the importance of art and Arctic sovereignty

Independent Manitoba Senator Patricia Bovey was a long way from Parliament Hill Feb. 12, visting Thompson to chat with local business owners and municipal government officials.
Senator Patricia Bovey in Thompson (Feb. 12, 2019)
Senator Patricia Bovey addresses a packed conference room at Thompson’s Meridian Hotel Feb. 12.

Independent Manitoba Senator Patricia Bovey was a long way from Parliament Hill Feb. 12, visting Thompson to chat with local business owners and municipal government officials.

The Thompson Chamber of Commerce organized a special lunch meeting at the Meridian Hotel on Tuesday to give Bovey free rein to discuss how she is keeping Northern Manitoba interests in the national conversation.

After running through her general responsibilities in the Senate, Bovey talked about the different pieces of legislation that she is currently sponsoring, which include Bill C-55; an amendment to the Oceans Act and the Canada Petroleum Resources Act.

While Bovey admitted that increasing environmental protections for oceans might not seem like a large concern for a Prairie province like Manitoba, she reminded everyone in attendance that the north plays a critical role in securing Canada’s Arctic sovereignty.

“The Chinese and the Russians know our ocean bed like you wouldn’t believe,” she said, mentioning that our claim on the Arctic Ocean could be in trouble if “we don’t find ways to deal with the security and the health and the education and the business of the northern part of our country.”

The other piece of legislation that’s of particular interest to Bovey is Bill S-234, which aims to establish a new visual artist laureate to compliment the country’s current poet laureate position.

While the bill was recently rejected in the House of Commons, Bovey, who is the first art historian and gallery professional to be appointed the Senate, reinforced the importance of passing it in the future.

“The arts are the third-largest employer in this country and our contributions to the economy are huge,” she said. “When the visual laureate bill becomes law, I would love to see Thompson artists apply for that two-year, part-time position.”

Bovey also mentioned how she was a big supporter of the proposed Thompson Aboriginal Arts Centre, and still considers the arts to be a viable path towards Indigenous reconciliation.

In order to keep these cultural, as well as economic, opportunities alive, Bovey said it is important to maintain a strong physical link between northern and southern Manitoba.

This is why she took such a keen interest in advocating for the reconstruction of the Hudson Bay Railway when a section of the track was washed away in May 2017.

“I applaud the consortium of new owners and the partnerships that were developed,” she said, referencing the restoration of the railway in the fall of 2018. “The First Nations, the communities along the line, the larger businesses that made it a reality and those who fixed the line. Don’t think I’m not really proud of the people in Brandon who came up with the technology to fix it.”

As an independent senator, Bovey mentioned that she has a little more flexibility when it comes to advocating for the north, since she isn’t bound by party interests.

Bovey said this kind of representation will come in handy if the residents of Thompson decide to push for new tourism projects or for outside-the-box economic initiatives, like autonomous vehicle testing, in the future.

“I think the time for and of the north has come,” she said to close out Tuesday’s meeting. “I think the policies for the north need to be made by the north, in the north and for the north and my job is to help that happen.“

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Bovey to the Senate in the fall of 2016. Before this, Bovey was big player in Canada’s art scene, serving as the director of the Winnipeg Art Gallery and as a member of the Canada Council for the Arts.

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