Submitted by Nathan Cullen, MP--Up to 10,000 residents of Skeena-Bulkley Valley are expected to join an innovative live and interactive telephone town hall hosted by MP Nathan Cullen next Wednesday evening (March 9). Along with guest Denise Savoie, Assistant Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, Cullen will talk about issues of concern to the Northwest and take as many questions as the 75-minute event will allow. "We're excited at the prospects of this fantastic technology that will allow us to connect directly and meaningfully with several thousand constituents at once," an enthusiastic Cullen told regional media yesterday. "We'll call out to every personal number in the riding in Elections Canada's database and anyone can choose to connect to the town hall at no charge." The process is simple. Next Tuesday, all listed residential telephone numbers in the Northwest will receive a recorded message from Cullen, inviting them to join the town hall Wednesday night. The numbers will be re-dialed between 7-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday and residents wishing to join the town hall follow simple prompts to do so. People wishing to ask questions will also be guided by prompts. Cullen said the technology, pioneered by the Obama campaign, is well-suited his sprawling riding, which stretches from Haida Gwaii to Fort St. James, north to the Yukon border and south to mid-Coast. "The opinions, questions and concerns of constituents are very important to me," Cullen said. "I'm looking forward to connecting with thousands of people across 300,000 kilometres on our telephone town hall."