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Huron Expositor, 2015-04-22, Page 88 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, April 22, 2015 Traffic stop in Seaforth leads to license suspension Marco Vigliotti Huron Expositor An elderly Huron East man has had his license sus- pended for three days after failing a roadside sobriety test Monday afternoon in Seaforth, police say. The 75 -year-old man was driving a GMC sports utility vehicle on Goderich Street when he was pulled over by an Ontario Provincial Police officer just before 2 p.m. for what police are calling a "random sobriety test." Upon speaking with the driver, the officer reportedly detected that the man had been consuming alcohol. Police say the officer conducted a road- side test that the driver failed. The man was then arrested and transported to the Exeter OPP detachment for further breath tests. The man's breath tests, according to police, showed that his Blood Alcohol Con- centration had lowered into the warning range. 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For morn tr.idrmahon pte°ase rcrrract Caroline Petersir at 519-262-3835 orregislrarl; ceislorrn.ra Former journalist looks to win Huron -Bruce Marco Vigliotti Huron Expositor Allan Thompson has swapped the bustling pace of the newsroom for the marathon of the modern- day campaign trail, with the former Toronto Star reporter set to stand as the Liberal candidate for Huron -Bruce in this Octo- ber's federal election. The Glammis Ont. native, who covered Parliament in the 1990s and early 2000s, claims to have already accrued more than 70,000 kilometres on his Jeep Compass the past year campaigning and meeting voters across the sprawling rural riding, currently rep- resented by Conservative Ben Lobb. Thompson, 51, said he believes his extensive experi- ence as a print reporter and universityjournalism profes- sor will allow him to become an effective representative for his home region. "I'm a career journalist and a teacher, so I think that skill -set will also be useful. I'm even finding I use it when I'm campaigning -in a way I'm kind of interviewing people," he said of his out- reach work so far, which has included multiple meet - and -greet sessions and door - knocking in the many com- munities included in Huron -Bruce. According to Thompson, voters in the riding have told him that they want an inde- pendent -minded MP who can effectively represent them in Ottawa - an admit- tedly tough environment to trumpet rural views. If elected, he said he would look to stand up for residents in the nation's cap- ital rather than serve as some sort of party spokesman. "People in a riding like Huron -Bruce deserve a pro- active, effective Member of Parliament, who can be their voice in Ottawa, not Ottawa's voice in Huron -Bruce," Thompson said. He also said he detected a "very, very strong senti- ment" from voters "that it is time for a change:' "People are genuinely tired of Stephen Harper's style of governing," Thomp- son noted. Raised on his family's farm near Tiverton, the veteran journalist has maintained deep roots in the region throughout his illustrious career, which included mul- tiple visits to sub-Saharan African to report on the Rwandan Genocide and child soldiers, among other geo-political issues. In a campaign press release, Thompson said he remained engaged with the community through his fam- ily ties, involvement with a number of local organiza- tions and as a member of the congregation at St. Paul's Presbyterian Church in Glammis. He also cited his time playing broomball with the Glammis Flyers, compiling a history of the early years of Glammis and duties as a guest speaker for groups such as the Saugeen chapter of the Canadian Federation of University Women and the Bruce County Historical Society. Thompson credits his upbringing and knowledge of the region for allowing him to bring a "rural lens" that is oft absent from national political discus- sions, with party leaders focusing instead on voter - heavy urban concentrations. A graduate of Bruce Town- ship Central Public in Underwood and Walkerton LOOKING FOR CO-ED SOCCER PLAYERS FOR ST. COLUMBAN REC TEAM Must be 18 or older Adam O'Reilly 519-274-3969 irishspring2009@live.ca Because you love your life. MedicAlert®.The bracelet with an emergency hotline linked to your medical record. Call 1-866-734-9423 or visit wwwmedicalert.ca ®MedicAlerr Lets You Live Life. Supplied Former Toronto Star journalist Allan Thompson is looking to become the first Liberal MP for Huron -Bruce since 2008. The Glammis native won the nomination for the party late last year. District Secondary School, Thompson began his jour- nalism career as a reporter with the Kincardine Inde- pendent and Teeswater News. From there, it was off to the bustling newsroom of the Star before eventually landing a teaching position with Carleton University's journalism school. The decision to enter par- tisan politics and effectively end - at least temporarily - his reporting career was prompted by the elevation of Justin Trudeau to the helm of the Liberal Party, Thomp- son said. He credits Trudeau's opti- mistic style of leadership for prompting him to become a member of the party for the first time in his life so he could vote for the Papineau MP in the 2013 leadership election. As for himself, Thompson won the Grit nomination for the riding last October. Huron -Bruce, however, still doesn't appear to be fer- tile ground for the federal Liberals, regardless of the party's resurgence in the polls nationwide. The vast and lanky riding contains a hefty section of Lake Huron's scenic shore- line, enveloping an array of locales, including Kincar- dine, Goderich, Walkerton, Exeter, Clinton and Seaforth. Thompson calls it one of the most rural ridings in the country, as none of its many communities boast a core population of 10,000 or more. In 2011, Lobb was re-elected here with about 55 per cent of the vote. Though that may be enough for prognosticators to give the advantage to the incumbent, Liberal MP Paul Steckle had previously repre- sented the riding from 1993 to 2008. Commonly regarded as a maverick for a propensity to buck the party line, Steckle was a staunch opponent of same-sex marriage and the long -gun registry who served as a backbencher in successive Liberal govern- ments that introduced both. Although careful not to indicate support for Steckle's social conservative leanings, Thompson suggested that voters here wanted someone from that similar mould who wasn't afraid to strike an independent course. "I think people should expect that their MP is going to represent them, be their voice in Ottawa," he said. "I do hear that from people (who say) please make sure you're the kind of person that's going to listen...and that you stand up for your riding." As well, Thompson claimed that a Trudeau-led government would afford MPs greater freedom to speak out than Stephen Harper's regime. "There is no tolerance for any other view (in Stephen Harper's government)," he said, adding that he is encouraged by "Trudeau's commitment to reinvigor- ating the House of Com- mons and the role for an ordinary MP."