By Laura Steiner, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Milton Reporter
The 2025 federal election is now underway, with voting day scheduled for April 28, 2025. As part of a boundary review, Milton has been divided into two ridings: Burlington North- Milton West, and Halton Hills South- Milton East. To help voters make an informed decision, we are doing profiles of candidates from both ridings. April 16 2025, we emailed the same five questions to all candidates, giving a week in which to answer them . The final profiles will be posted in the order they are received.
Kristina Tesser Derksen is a twice elected Milton Town Councillor, lawyer and community leader. She is the candidate for the Liberal Party of Canada (LPC) in the riding of Milton East- Halton Hills South.
Liberal Party of Canada (LPC) Candidate Kristina Tesser Derksen, for the riding of Milton East-Halton Hills South
According to Halton Regional Police, 52 cars have been stolen since January 1, of this year. What would your party do to stop it?
Kristina Tesser Derksen: Car theft is a major concern in Georgetown and Milton, and law enforcement and law makers are fo
cussed on resolving it. Vehicle thefts in Halton dropped from 1,500 to 1,200 in the past year, but said that’s still more than three a day. Halton Region consistently remains one of the safest regions in the country, having the lowest Crime Severity Index (CSI) in Canada for 24 consecutive years, and we want to keep it that way.
Mark Carney announced his Liberal government’s policy to take responsible action to address crime in our communities by strengthening our law enforcement and justice system to fight organized crime and trafficking, better protect families and children, and stop the flow of drugs and guns from the U.S. border. We will recruit 2000 more RCMP and Canada Boarder Services agents in order to better monitor ports where stolen vehicles are smuggled; increase funding to the Public Prosecution Services of Canada to increase capacity to prosecute these crimes; and invest in our first responders so they have the resources to investigate and apprehend thefts. Federal Liberals want to keep Halton’s record of high safety protected.
2. The average house price in Milton is $1,003,587. What is your party’s plan to make housing more affordable?
Kristina Tesser Derksen: Mark Carney’s Liberals have a plan to create Build Canada Homes(BCH) to get the federal government back into the business of home building. The Liberal government will undertake development of affordable housing at scale, including on public lands; provide $25 billion in financing to increase innovative pre-fabricated home building; and provide $10 billion in low-cost financing and capital to affordable home builders.
Mark Carney’s Liberal government will also cut red tape and build on the Housing Accelerator Fund, which has already provided $22 million to the Town of Milton. The Liberal housing plan will also build on the elimination of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) for first-time homebuyers on homes at or under $1 million. I have four young-adult children who are trying to launch their lives in a time of housing scarcity and high prices. I am confident that the Liberal housing plan will alleviate the housing crisis for them and upcoming generations.
3. What makes your leader the best suited to be Prime Minister?
Kristina Tesser Derksen: Mark Carney is a clear choice for me – a world class education, real-world private and public sector experience, and a proven record of navigating countries through economic crisis – he is already doing the job of managing Donald Trump and getting tangible results! I am fully confident that Mark Carney is the leader we need for this moment and for Canada. The other contenders cannot hold a candle to Mark Carney’s resume or experience. His rational, calm, and unifying temperament, and its clear that he is the leader we need right now.
4. How will your party help farmers and the agriculture industry negate the impacts of climate change?
Kristina Tesser Derksen: Liberals will implement a suite of policy measures to defend agricultural supply management, invest in agri-businesses and workers, and cut red tape for producers and sellers. This will include: making permanent increases to the AgriStability Program, from $3 million to $6 million per farm, in the case of significant revenue drops caused by the impacts of tariffs, extreme weather events, and other external shocks; build more domestic processing capacity in rural areas, with a new $200 million Domestic Food Processing Fund; and increase support for farmers, ranchers, and producers to access new markets for their food products with an additional $30 million in the AgriMarketing Program.
This will all be implemented while continuing to build on the Liberal dedication to environmental sustainability and climate justice, which will continue to protect more natural lands by: continue the planting of 2 billion trees across the country, creating roughly 4,300 jobs; restore and enhance more wetlands, grasslands, and peatlands, to capture and store carbon, and increase support to farmers to develop and adopt agricultural management practices to reduce emissions, store carbon in healthy soil, and enhance resiliency. Cover cropping, rotational grazing and nitrogen management are all part of a green farming plan for Canada. This plan will not only protect nature and help fight climate change, but also create jobs, help farmers, and help preserve biodiversity across the country.
5. The CN Intermodal, and the Campbellville Quarry are two projects that have faced strong opposition in Milton. How do you intend to advocate on these issues on behalf of your constituents?
Kristina Tesser Derksen: As a Town Councillor, the proposed Campbellville Quarry is in the Ward I represent. I have publicly advocated for its cancellation, brought forward motions at Town Council to address the matter and protect residents, met with the provincial Minister responsible, and supported community mobilization against the Quarry. While the Quarry Application is primarily under the jurisdiction of the province, I will continue to oppose the Quarry and the CN Intermodal project, consistent with my record on Town Council in opposition to both projects.
For more information on the riding of Milton East- Halton Hills South including details on how to vote, visit the Elections Canada website
