Guide for MP Meeting
Purpose of Meeting: To discuss Canada’s role in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic at a global level
Ask: Canada should invest at least 1% (approximately $2 billion) of its COVID-19 spending in new and additional aid towards an emergency response to end the pandemic everywhere and stop the humanitarian and development crisis it has created.
General advice
Before the meeting: If you haven’t met the MP before, read their bio from their party website and follow them on social media.
Note: it may be that you won’t be able to get a meeting with your actual MP, but with one of his or her staff instead. This is fine and still very valuable.
Day of the meeting:
- Arrive early and open up the app if you are using one for the meeting (example Zoom).
- Meetings typically last 15-20 minutes. The MP might also get pulled out early. Use your time wisely and have your key points ready to go.
- Introduce yourself to the MP. If you’re from their riding or city, mention that. Tell them about your organization and why you’re there. Let them know why you care.
- Thank/congratulate on past support/previous work - if their party has committed funding or is overall supportive of development work, thank them.
- Get quickly to the “Ask” – Make it clear and concise, using the key messages in the Backgrounder to inform your points.
- Don’t make up answers. If a staffer or MP asks you a question that you don’t know how to answer, say, “I’m not sure but I’ll make sure our team gets back to you with one.” Take note of the question and log it on your meeting report so that someone can follow up.
- Don’t get into a debate. If a member or staff disagrees, don’t get into an argument, instead explain as a constituent why this topic matters to you.
- If you are comfortable doing so, ask if you can take a screenshot of your meeting and share it on social media.
- Let them know you will be following up with their office if they have agreed to take one of the actions below.
Ask your MP to take action
If a Liberal MP and they are supportive of our “ask”:
- Request they write to the Prime Minister and Finance Minister to express their support for greater foreign aid investment to address the COVID-19 crisis globally;
- Also ask them to raise it during a caucus meeting;
If an MP from the Conservatives, NDP, Greens or Bloc and they are supportive:
- Request they write to their leader asking them to make Canada’s role in fighting COVID-19 abroad a priority;
- Also ask that they raise it during a caucus meeting;
If they are not supportive: try to understand why but don’t get into an argument. Report back on the points they made to disagree with the ask.
After the meeting:
- If you were able to take a screen shot during the meeting, post on social media (or send to pat_dolan@hotmail.com, for posting on Twitter. If you do post, tag the MP and your organization, using the hashtag #endcovideverywhere.
- Report back to your organization on how the meeting went and if the MP agreed to write to the PM and the Finance Minister and or raise the issue at caucus.
