HALIFAX – Tory Rushton is now officially the MLA for Cumberland South.
The Oxford native was officially sworn-in to the Nova Scotia legislature during a brief ceremony at Province House in Halifax on Wednesday.
“It’s real today,” said Rushton, moments after signing the roll to officially become an MLA.
The former chief of the Oxford Fire Department and an employee of Oxford Frozen Foods was elected in the June 19 by-election to replace former PC leader and Cumberland South MLA Jamie Baillie.
Since then, Rushton has been busy preparing his constituency office and familiarizing himself with members of the PC caucus.
“I’ve spent a lot of time going around the constituency meeting people that I didn’t get to meet during the campaign,” said Rushton. “Now, that I’m an MLA, it’s time to get down to business representing the people of Cumberland South.”
Rushton, whose grandfather George Henley was a cabinet minister in the government of John Buchanan in the 1970s, said he intends to press the transportation and infrastructure renewal minister on the replacement of the Rainbow Bridge near Amherst and the condition of numerous roads across Cumberland South as well as a washed out culvert in Rodney.
He also expects the province to live up to its promise to replace Junction Road and West-End Memorial schools with a new elementary school and to give the people of Springhill a voice in the period leading up to its construction.
He is also working with Cumberland North MLA Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin on the situation at the Cumberland Regional Health Care Centre and wants to work with Health and Wellness to address to continued closures of emergency rooms in Springhill and Parrsboro.
“Hopefully we can find some solutions to these problems,” Rushton said.
He also plans to spend some time with family before the legislature opens in the fall.
“It has been a very busy five months with the campaign, but it’s time well spent and in the end we were successful,” Rushton said.
Rushton said his constituency office in Springhill will be in the same location as Jamie Baillie’s office while he also plans to spend time in other communities as his predecessors did.
Twitter: @ADNdarrell
