My first placement is with government Member Rudy Cuzzetto. MPP Cuzzetto is the Parliamentary Assistant to the Treasury Board (Internal Audit). As a Parliamentary Assistant, MPP Cuzzetto’s work is split between his duties as the Member for Mississauga-Lakeshore, and those for the Treasury Board. Because of this dual role, MPP Cuzzetto has two Executive Assistants, Mona Ali and Michael Smith, who work out of his Queen’s Park office. I have been welcomed very warmly by MPP Cuzzetto’s office, and they have made it possible for me to contribute in a variety of ways.
Over the first month of my placement I have had the opportunity to work on many of the day to day tasks necessary for the functioning of the office, and preparatory work for events. In terms of the daily work, MPP Cuzzetto often takes meetings with stakeholders, who come to Queen’s Park to garner support from MPPs for their causes. I have been helping to prepare briefing notes for those meetings and I often attend the meetings with MPP Cuzzetto. Sitting in on those meetings and taking notes has expanded my knowledge on so many different issues and groups in Ontario and helped me learn more about how members of society interact with their elected representatives.
MPP Cuzzetto also cares a lot about his riding, and likes to spend as much time as he can meeting constituents in Mississauga-Lakeshore at events in the community or in his office. This has given me the opportunity to draft speeches for a variety of community events, which has helped me learn more about Mississauga-Lakeshore’s history and local issues. Additionally, over constituency week, I was able to visit the constituency office. As this was early on in our placement, it provided a great opportunity to meet the constituency staff and learn more about the side of an MPP’s role away from Queen’s Park, and in the community. That week I was able to attend an announcement at a local hospital by Minister Elliot, a 100th birthday party, and the Port Credit Remembrance Day parade and ceremony, amongst many other events. It was great to see how dedicated MPP Cuzzetto is to working for constituents, and how the work he is doing at Queen’s Park translates to his community.
Overall, I have had a great first few weeks in my government placement, and I am excited to see what work I can contribute to in the coming months.