Portage-Lisgar MP Candice Bergen held her annual tea in Portage la Prairie yesterday afternoon at the Portage and District Arts Centre. She says it's a Portage tradition for her.

"I'm having my eighth annual tea," says Bergen. "I alternate between Christmas and New Years teas in Portage, and it's New Years Tea. So, this is my eighth or ninth one that I've had. It's the first time that we've I've had in the art gallery. It's kind of distracting in a good way, because I love art and I actually just went a purchased a piece of art that looks like it was drawn by a local Hutterite woman."

She explains she normally spreads the word to people with a recorded voice invitation but didn't for this time around, and a smaller crowd showed up. But, she says, it allowed for more intimate talk with everyone individually. Bergen adds she's hearing concerns of constituents that the federal government's spending too much money.

"People are concerned about the money the federal government is spending," Bergen explains. "A report just came out today that said that if we continue on the track that Trudeau has us on, we will be in a trillion dollar debt in fifteen years -- which is the complete opposite of what we as Conservatives were doing."