Connecting with people across the Lethbridge region and taking part in community events were among the top highlights of the year for the area’s member of Parliament.
Lethbridge MP Rachael Thomas said celebrating community members was a highlight of 2025. One example she shared was attending a recent ribbon-cutting for a local café opened by newcomers to Canada who she said are “getting a fresh start.”
“They’re taking a risk and investing capital and starting a business and hoping to serve in our community. I think that’s incredible and worth celebrating,” Thomas said. “I would say in addition to that, of course, my job is to be in Ottawa and to hold the government to account.”
In Ottawa this year, Thomas tabled a private member’s bill, Bill C-246, focused on requiring consecutive sentences for sexual offences rather than concurrent sentences. She said she brought forward the bill after speaking with victims of sexual assault who felt perpetrators received lenient sentences.
“These victims felt that the justice system wasn’t strong enough and so then from there I started reaching out to more organizations and trying to get a sense of what’s going on. I spoke with police as well to get a sense of what their take was and all in all there was this overall sense that our justice system is broken,” Thomas said. “Meanwhile, victims are the ones that are paying the price.”
Thomas said in sexual assault cases, people convicted of multiple counts often serve concurrent sentences.
“Which means one plus one plus one plus one plus one equals one and so at the end of the day it’s a sentence discount.”
“This is wrong and it needs to be changed and so my private member’s bill looks to address this.”
Thomas said there is still significant work to do to support victims, particularly those affected by gender-based violence and sexual offences. The Conservative MP said she has been told that many sexual assaults go unreported because victims fear the justice system and would rather live with the trauma.
“They would rather know that their perpetrator went free than try to tackle a broken system and so unfortunately they don’t pursue justice to the extent that is necessary,” she said. “It’s heartbreaking and our country has an opportunity to make it better to remedy this and so whether it’s my private member’s bill C-246 or my colleague Frank Caputo’s private member’s bill on intimate partner violence.”
Thomas also pointed to another private member’s bill, Bill C-242, brought forward by Conservative MP Arpan Khanna, which she described as a step toward strengthening Canada’s justice system. The bill is commonly referred to as the “jail not bail” act. Thomas said the legislation prioritizes victims over offenders.
“In 2026, Thomas said she will continue to focus on affordability, which she said is one of the most common issues raised with her office.
“People are finding it more and more difficult to be able to pay rent or pay for their mortgage, buy groceries. Here in Lethbridge, we’ve seen the number of people who rely on the food bank skyrocket.”
“I think what’s most sad about that is the food bank usage among children in Lethbridge is up by 150 per cent and these are children and so to know that is really heartbreaking and something can be done about that.”
Thomas said the federal government has a responsibility to rein in spending to help prevent inflation and avoid shifting debt onto Canadians through higher taxes. She added she hopes workers will see wage increases.
“They need to be able to feed their families. They need to be able to put a roof over their head. They need to be able to afford life and the government can make a difference in this area and so that’s my hope for 2026.”
