WAKAW — Kelly Block was first elected to the House of Commons representing the riding of Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar on Oct. 14, 2008, and was re-elected on May 2, 2011. She was then elected as the MP for the newly created riding of Carlton Trail-Eagle Creek in 2015, and again in 2019 and 2021.
Over the past 14 years, Kelly has served on several standing committees as well as on special committees, including the Committee on Violence Against Indigenous Women and the Special Subcommittee on a Code of Conduct for Members.
In September of 2013, Kelly was appointed as the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources. Parliamentary secretaries handle routine matters in the House of Commons, engage in committee work as non-voting members, assume some extra-parliamentary responsibilities, and thereby act as a link between ministers and other parliamentarians. As Parliamentary Secretary, Block therefore, played an important legislative role in overseeing the passing of the Offshore Health and Safety Act, the Energy Safety and Security Act, and the Pipeline Safety Act.
Block served as the Shadow Minister for Transport between 2015 and 2019. After the 2019 election, she was appointed as the Shadow Minister for Public Services and Procurement, where she served until October 2020, when she was elected as the Chair of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. From August 2021 until October 2022, she served on the Standing Committee for Procedure and House Affairs. In October 2022, she was appointed Shadow Minister for Public Services and Procurement.
In September 2020, Block introduced a Private Member’s Bill to the House of Commons, called the Protection of Freedom of Conscience Act, which would protect medical professionals who do not want to participate in Medical Assistance in Dying. The bill died when the 2021 election was called. Block reintroduced her Private Member’s Bill on February 4th, 2022. It was defeated at Second reading on October 5th, 2022. While her bill has yet to pass, Freedom of Conscience remains an important issue to Block.
Since 2017, Block has served as Co-Chair of CANFoRB, the Canadian branch of the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion and Belief (IPPFoRB).
Before being elected as a Member of Parliament, Block served on the town council of Waldheim, SK, for three terms, including two terms as Mayor. At the same time, she was a member of the Saskatoon Regional Health Authority and the Director of Administration at Forest Grove Community Church.
Block and her husband, Milton, have four children, all of whom are married, and eleven grandchildren.
Block shared that being very committed to working for the future generations, her children and grandchildren, and wanting to ensure that they have a quality of life that she has had the good fortune of experiencing as a Canadian, is what originally drew her to politics. She has a passion for community service and has always believed in being involved in her community… so whether serving on a committee to build a park or serve on a Health Board, or later, on a Regional Health Authority, or serving as a member of a town council, saying yes to giving back, has created more opportunities to serve. So, one opportunity built upon another, until she took that step to run for federal politics.
The boundaries of the riding were redrawn in 2023, but the geographical area of the riding is pretty much the same as it was, and the same is true of the population. The physical size of the riding, Block said, does make it difficult to reach everyone timewise, often spending as much, if not more, time on the road as in the communities. When the boundaries changed, there was this notion that technology would assist candidates in connecting to their constituents. While technology and social media are great, nothing beats face-to-face conversations, and it has always been a goal for Block and her team to meet as many constituents as possible, and that is why, she said, they are being very strategic in planning their campaign. “We have over 60 hamlets, villages, towns, and cities. We have three First Nations communities, Hutterite communities, and all of the rural municipalities. We have a plan to get into all of these communities and have been intentional about reaching out to ensure that people’s concerns are being heard.”
Saskatchewan only holds 14 seats out of the 343 that will be filled in the House of Commons after the upcoming election. When questioned about how much influence those seats can have, Block replied that the Saskatchewan members of the Conservative caucus have always been strong advocates for the province, both in the national caucus and in the House of Commons. And while Saskatchewan does have a smaller population compared to other provinces, when there is a federal government in power that understands and values the unique contributions each region makes to the country as a whole, the number of MPs from a specific region becomes less of an issue. She went on to say that having 14 members of parliament deeply committed to the province of Saskatchewan has benefited the province, both because they speak with one voice in their national caucus as well as in the House of Commons. The philosophy of a government, she believes, is instrumental in the impact members of parliament can have as representatives for their region.
With four First Nations in the riding, One Arrow First Nation became part of the constituency with the 2023 boundary changes, engagement with them is important, as a member of parliament, Block said she has “reached out to the two communities in our riding, which would be Muskeg Lake and Beardy’s, and look forward to receiving the invitations to attend events there, that I always have.”
Voters often look to the leaders of political parties when determining who they will vote for. If faced with a comment such as, ‘I would vote for you as an MP, but I can’t align myself with your party leader,’ Block said that while she can’t say that she has heard that much during this election, she agreed that candidates do hear it. It is important to remember, a party leader and their team of candidates are all running together on the same platform. “You hear it every election. There are always those who appreciate a particular leader’s style. In those conversations, I would encourage those voters to carefully consider the party’s platform, the policies they are proposing, the principles they are built on, and the integrity, character and substance of the party.”
Block says that she wants voters to know that her commitment to serve the people that she represents is as strong as it has always been. She will continue to work hard on their behalf and represent their voices in the House of Commons. She is “excited to implement our Conservative plan” and “committed to ending the ‘destructive policies’ of the Liberal government. I am hearing over and over again that it is time for a change and that constituents do not believe that the current Liberal leader represents the change that they need to see.”
