{"id":372956271,"date":"2016-03-21T11:38:00","date_gmt":"2016-03-21T16:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/metro\/2016\/03\/21\/fletcher-eager-to-serve-again"},"modified":"2016-03-28T17:43:34","modified_gmt":"2016-03-28T22:43:34","slug":"fletcher-eager-to-serve-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/metro\/2016\/03\/21\/fletcher-eager-to-serve-again","title":{"rendered":"Fletcher eager to serve again"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Steven Fletcher knows that when one door closes, another one opens. <\/p>\n<p>Having finished an 11-year term as Member of Parliament for Charleswood-St.James-Assiniboia-Headingley, Fletcher intends to stay close to home as he campaigns as the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba&rsquo;s candidate in Assiniboia.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This has turned out to be an opportunity,&rdquo; Fletcher said. &ldquo;People often express that I did a very good job as their MP and I exceeded any and all my expectations and would like to bring that skill set on the provincial scene.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class='wp-caption full photo'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2022\/04\/at-fletcher-supplied-march23.jpg?w=1000' data-pswp-srcset='https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2022\/04\/at-fletcher-supplied-march23.jpg?w=320 320w, https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2022\/04\/at-fletcher-supplied-march23.jpg?w=600 600w, https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2022\/04\/at-fletcher-supplied-march23.jpg?w=1920 1920w' data-pswp-width='2048' data-pswp-height='1363'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img src=\"https:\/\/www.winnipegfreepress.com\/our-communities\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2022\/04\/at-fletcher-supplied-march23.jpg?w=1000\" alt=\"Supplied photo\nSteven Fletcher is the Manitoba Progressive Conservatives\u2019 candidate in the Assiniboia riding for this year\u2019s provincial election.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='dynamic-caption'>Supplied photo\nSteven Fletcher is the Manitoba Progressive Conservatives\u2019 candidate in the Assiniboia riding for this year\u2019s provincial election.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n<p>Fletcher said knowing the ins and outs of politics, combined with his work in the Assiniboia area, will give him a boost in the April 19 election.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve run the gamut of what you can do in Ottawa and I understand the machinery of government and how the process works,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I would say there&rsquo;s probably no one else that could bring that to the table and with what I&rsquo;ve already done for Assiniboia, I think (the campaign) is going very well and that&rsquo;s thanks to the people of the area.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Fletcher said that in door-knocking, he has not only heard concerns over the state of the roads but experienced them himself. With experience as the Minister of State for Transport, infrastructure is a focus for Fletcher.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s an occasional pothole I thought I might fall into,&rdquo; he told The Metro. &ldquo;The constituents are really upset about the roads and the sidewalks and having door-knocked, I have to agree they&rsquo;re not in good shape.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Fletcher also expressed concern over the hospital wait times in Assiniboia, an issue that several PC candidates in West Winnipeg have addressed.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The wait times at the hospitals, particularly Grace, are the worst in the country,&rdquo; Fletcher said. &ldquo;Not in Manitoba, the country. And that is not acceptable; we have to get a handle on that right away.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He went on to say that working to make the front line and management more efficient, as well as the implementation of technology, may help to solve the problem.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We could enhance the front line services and be more cost conscious,&rdquo; the candidate said. &ldquo;One of the obvious ways is through technology. Manitoba is behind other provinces. I still have a cardboard health card &mdash; it&rsquo;s the 21st century!&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>Manitobans head to the polls on April 19.<\/p><div 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