In the wake of the death of London woman who was hit by a train, three London MPPs have written a letter to Premier Doug Ford asking him to take action on London’s homelessness problem.

The letter was shared on Twitter by London Fanshawe MPP Teresa Armstrong (NDP).  The document was also signed by London West MPP Peggy Sattler (NDP) and London North Centre MPP Terence Kernaghan (NDP).

Mykal West, 34, died on January 4 after being hit by a train near downtown London. The London Free Press reported West was experiencing homelessness at the time of her death and local  shelters had no available beds. The letter suggests that, if Mykal had a safe place to stay, this tragedy would have never happened. 

“Mykal was failed by a system that stigmatized her and was unable to provide her basic needs while she struggled with the impacts of mental health challenges,” the letter reads.

In the last three years, 201 unhoused people have died in London. The city has just 140 shelter spaces, and an estimated 400 or more city residents sleeping and living outdoors, the letter says. The document also includes a worrying statistic from the London Food Bank – about 20,000 Londoners were unable to afford food in 2022, the highest of any year since the food bank opened in 1986.

The MPPs also expressed their distaste for the way West was portrayed after her death, being identified as simply a “homeless woman.” West was a daughter, mother, sister, niece, and a longtime member of the London community, according to the letter.

Armstrong, Sattler, and Kernaghan have teamed up with West’s family to call for action from the provincial government. Slamming his funding cuts and policy changes that have “underminded [their] goal,” the MPP’s implored Ford to help create more affordable housing and to increase funding for social organizations that work to end homelessness in the community.

“The City of London has identified addressing homelessness as a priority in its draft strategic plan. Since November 2022, the City has been working with more than 60 local organizations, agencies, and business groups on a community plan to address the crisis, and is holding the third Summit on Homelessness at the end of the month,” the letter says. “The city and our community partners have an important part to play in achieving the goal of ending homelessness, but they need support from the provincial government.”