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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1976-05-06, Page 26Main St, Exeter PHONE 235-0464 Page 26 Times-Advocate, May 6, 1976 • -• • --:.:71ELESIZTE:FZPMEMENEEETAwM123.ZITEMIY la °map #am 2ceeept'd, Hanle By JACK RIDDELL MPP Huron-Middlesex FLOWERS OF HOPE — Workers at ARC Industries, Dashwood, have been busy packaging envelopes of Marigold seeds for the Flowers of Hope Campaign, a canvass for the South Huron and District Association for the Mentally Retarded, which will begin May 10 and continue through to May 16. Rick McCann, (far left) and Jerry Collins are shown preparing the packages which symbolize the intent of the campaign, while Don Campbell, the new director of ARC and Donna Greb, chairwoman of the campaign, holding Jamie Ramer of Zurich, look on. T-A photo as THE WORK of several local craftsmen is expected to be offered for sale at the Exeter and District Heritage Foundation's Show and Sale at the Town Hall on May 21 and 22. Mrs. Marion Dearing of Exeter is one of the participants in the event. She is shown here with a small part of her collection of handcrafted jewellery. T-A photo The facts that are known and undisputed about the events surrounding the receivership of Essex Packers Limited of Hamilton, convinced me that there should be a full judicial inquiry, which I asked the Attorney General in the Legislature, this week, to con- sider. The Attorney General did not think that a Judicial Inquiry was necessary but that he would be willing to answer any question to the best of his ability that I may wish to ask about the manner in which the Government assigned the lease of the Guelph Centre Plan to the De Jonge Group. There have been many allegations made which I cannot repeat here because they lack solid documented evidence but I thought the only way to clear up any doubts about the way the Government conducted the business was, with an inquiry. It is a fact that the $900,000 meat packing plant which the Province owns at the Guelph Correction Institute has been leased to the De Jonge Group, a term applied to brothers, Mike, Bennie and John De Jonge who control several meat packing companies in the Province. The lease was assigned to the De Jonge Group without calling public tenders. Bennie De Jonge was convicted in 1972 of fraud involving short weighing cattle bought by farmers. The Minister of Correctional Services said he was fully aware of the fraud conviction, yet recommended that De Jonge's take over the operation of the Guelph Plant. Mr. Smith, the Minister of Correctional Services, said other proposals to take over the Guelph Centre were rejected because those offers did not include any assistance for the Essex Packers Plants in Hamilton. It is my feeling that a Judicial Inquiry should establish why the fate of Essex was linked to the Guelph Centre lease. The Province had a clause in its lease with Essex enabling it to cancel a lease, yet it chose not to exercise that option. A Judicial Inquiry should examine the events leading up to the original lease with Essex Packers to determine the reason that Essex was chosen in the first place. The Inquiry should examine the reasons why the Government failed to cancel the lease to Essex when Essex was forced into receivership by the Bank of Nova Scotia, on October 31. The lease remained with Essex until March 18, when Cabinet assigned it to the De Jonge Group. The Inquiry should examine the financial records of Essex Packers including bank records asnd activities and the manner in which creditors were paid and not paid in the week leading up to October 31. The Inquiry should examine the claims of Frederick and Harrud Inc. of Detroit, that the receivers managed Essex poorly and creditors were losing assets, The Inquiry should examine the terms and con- ditions of the De Jonge Group's offer to help the Essex Plant. It is my opinion that the De Jonge's could quite conceivably cease the operations of the essex Plants in Hamilton, after a six month period of time, as it is the modern plant at the Guelph Correctional Centre which has the greatest potential. Finally the Inquiry should make recommendations to protect farmers from financially- crippling blows of a similar nature in the future. There is a clear need for some form of protection for those who sell their cattle to meat packing com- panies. Many farmers feel that the best interests of beef farmers were dealt away by the Provincial Cabinet for political motives and if this is the case then it is un- derstandable why the Attorney General is not prepared to con- duct a Judicial Inquiry. I intend to pursue this matter further for there are some farmers who lost thousands of dollars in the entire transaction. The largest labour demon- stration in the history of Queen's Park took place this week in said there is nothing the Government can do to force the firm to pay employees laid off because of the clean-up. However, .Mr. Bullbrook said, "We are a legislative body. Let's pass a statute forcing them to" Come share our table . . . RESERVE NOW FOR OUR MOTHERS DAY SMORGARAMA Brunch 12:00 - 2:30 p.m. $4.25 Buffet Dinner 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. $5.50 Village Irm .rtreat &litre Grand Bend 238-2348 'It's a family affair' Cancer can be beaten The cctiuMrt that's road fo t r a purpos.. . III 1111 by Scatty Hamilton Mad your problems to "Impact"' c/o this paper. All letters will be answered provided a stamped addressed unveil** Lf is enclosed. Some of general interest will be published. , Letters must be signed but we will NOT reveal your identity. - "These Question* and Answers based an. Ontario Law, i are published to inform and not to advise. No one is ,should fry to apply or interpret. the law without the laid and advice of a trained expert who knows the facts, since the facts of each case .may change the application of the law." NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE , EXETER R ar , 262- 2823 All the BARON FREE SCOTIA ROBERT BELL MOBLE HOMES PHARMACY LTD. of KIPPEN latest models including and COACHMAN Literature on Request BANK FINANCING OVER 12 1/2 Years A division of DAVID BELL ENTERPRISES LTD 235-1570 or 235-1070 373 MAIN ST. /0/...,,,,,„........ FUNERAL EXETER 235-1220 ASSOCIATION ..00 , . . BER OF, HOME . MEMBER ONTARIO FUNERAL IA For the information in this week's column our thanks go to our good friend J. E. of the Ministry of Consumer and Commercial Relations. The Personal Property Security Registration (PPSR) system went into effect in the province on April 1. The new computer system tells an individual who intends to purchase personal property or lend money on the security of personal property whether the owner has previously pledged that property as security for a debt. "A person buying a car in a private sale, for example, is able to determine if the seller really owns the vehicle or is still paying for it," Sidney Handleman, Minister of Consumer and Commer- cial Relations, said. The original seller is able to register a lien against the car so that any subsequent purchasers or lenders can find out about the lien through PPSR. Upon payment of a $2 fee, the required financial information is obtainable by mail or by telephone at any of 48 branch offices across the province. The branches telephone the request to the central Toronto office which is connected to the computer. The required data is then supplied within minutes. Regular users of the system are able to open deposit accounts with the central office where the $2 for each request is deducted automatically. This permits requests to be made from any telephone in the province. The system was developed entirely out of registration fees and fees will cover operating costs so that no tax dollars were or will be involved. It replaced a system of manual indexes that has been operating for over 100 years and was used mainly by business. .vi it il Ifigi 0( ER Radio Ihaek 0 AND TROPHIES DEALER OFF TROPHIES! 50% ENGRAVING done on premises For all your RADIO- STEREO and C.B. needs — see usl 411 Main St., Exeter — 235-2261 Bob & Shirrs RALPH GENTTNER FUELS LTD, Hwy. 4 & Huron Pk. Rd. RESTAURANT OasW' COFFEE BAR FamiN Fast Take Out Siljii * * per' Groceries Variety 228- GAS for LESS! 6751 47N 41. 1 Gulf AM \ 235_ 11111" 2411 12 SANDERS W. EXETER "No label - no gasoline." That's portable gasoline cans. If the (Underwriters' Laboratories of Standards Association) label, oline. By asking a service station attendant to fill an uncertified you are exposing yourself to danger of fire and/or explosion. are also asking the attendant break the law and fines to both station and attendant can be Gasoline can be dangerous. Carry only in a certified container. NTIR y CO RN N E R STORES 237-3456 MOUNT the can you may can, the You the high. it Canada) law , now in Ontario doesn't have the or CSA (Canadian not use it to carry for all ULC gas- - c,. u,c to ( 0 ,y- ,, -1j----.--.-___.-----"4-"--' --:.• v -•---% .., I --0,7,--..) :..k . . - . - 1 it -. CARMEL Your ONLY Authorized YAMAHA Sales and Service IN THIS AREA! -7 - ''‘t- . , .n.n - Ct .. - w 4 ray The Rent Review Act was passed in the Ontario Legislature in mid-December, 1975, Less than 12 weeks later, the conceiSt had become reality and review hearings were under way. . In the interim, more than 400 people had been mustered, trained and deployed to 34 strategic locations (which had to be found and furnished) across the province. The Act, which is administered by the Ministry of Consumer and Commercial Relations, allows for a review of the rent charg- ed by a landlord and is retroactive to rents starting Aug. 1, 1975. Originally, tenancy agreements were subject to a guideline in- crease of eight per cent per year over the rent charged during the last full month prior to Aug. 1, 1975, to prevail until Aug. 1, 1976. In March, Sidney Handleman, Minister of Consumer and Commercial Relations, announced that the eight per cent guideline would continue to apply for increases in the Aug. 1, 1976 to July 31, 1977 year. The Act applies only to premises rented for residential pur- poses, covering detached dwellings, townhouses, apartments, rooms and mobile home sites. Rent review became necessary, the Minister said, because rent, increases began to outpace general inflation at an accelerating rate. In many cases, increases came too high and too fast to bei accommodated in the typical tenant's monthly budget. 4C42 Ecidepteca ea Ocez Rea:tale CARL s. REAL ESTATE BROKER 235-2533 489 Main St., Exeter ANYTIME LETTERING T. MONUMENTS 293 MAIN EST. Pryde EXETER 1919 ST. - MARKERS go ,44 /!iira... ..„,,, ..,,,,„s, & Son Ltd. S. I a. .................—* 235- 0620 protest against the Government's restraint program. Thousands of workers filled the lawn and pavement from the steps leading into the Legislative Building to the curb at College Street. The size of the crowd brought to Queen's Park by the Ontario Federation of Labour, and its affiliated unions, was seen by union leaders as vindicating their position that they speak for their members in condemning the Government's spending ceilings as they affect social and com- munity services. Each year representatives of the Ontario Federation's views on a wide range of current issues, and this year the meeting reflected labour's opposition to the federal wage control program and the province's acceptance of it, with the focus on the Govern- ment's restraint program and ceilings on grants to municipalities, cutbacks in hospitals, including hospital closings and the impact of the restraint program on social services. This past week the Minister of Housing announced that Ontario's rent-geared-to-income housing units will no longer come under the Provincial rent review program, an amendment which the Liberal Party will support. The Opposition voted originally to include public housing under the rent review legislation because it was concerned that the rent-geared-to-income scale was not working fairly. Now that a review of this scale is underway, it is unnecessary to maintain another level of costly bureaucracy. In connection with housing in the Province, Liberal _Leader Stuart Smith challenged the Minister of Housing about his plans, if any, to encourage building of more rental units to avert "skyrocketing" rents when controls are removed next year. The Minister indicated that he really had no answer to the question of what could be done to encourage the private sector to cope with the situation. Dr. Smith said "there should be more in- centives to builders and municipalities and, if necessary, a partnership arrangement between government and private industry". United Asbestos Inc. was or- dered to close this month by the Government because 'of the unsafe asbestos-fibre readings at its Matachewan plant. The plant was ordered to clean up or close permanently. According to James Bullbrook, M.P.P. (Liberal-Sarnia) legislation is needed to force corporations such as United Asbestos to pay em- ployees who suffer fiancially, in this type of situation. The Minister of Natural Resources Dear Sir: The proposed closure of the Clinton Public Hospital as an active care facility will affect not only the people of Clinton but the population of Huron County. The decision to close the Clinton Public Hospital is irrational, morally wrong and unjusl. The most disturbing aspect of the whole situation is that the people of Goderich and Wingham have been deceived into believing that nothing could be done to prevent Clinton being closed. OPEN DAILY DASHWOOD HOTEL Had there been co-operation between all Hospitals in Huron County, with each willing to accept a share of the cut backs, Clinton could have remained as a viable active care facility. I would hope that when the axe falls again in Huron County, and let's make no mistake about this, there will be further cut backs, that the people of Huron County will unite and insist that the cut backs be shared by all. Doug Coventry Clinton, Ontario Sat, night only Picture Lounge Fri., Sat. Evening & Sat. Matinee Bobby Whitmore "The Raw Country Boys COMING May 20th to 29th "Pete Duval" Back from Nashville May 8 Silver Strings Tiffany Lounge Reservations are Now Being Accepted for Special Mother's Day Dinner Dining Room Open at 4 p.m. Reserve Early YOUR HOSTS "PETE" and "CAROLE" DEITZ HIGHWAY 21 — GRAND BEND I 'it Wally's CHINESE GARDEN Friday evening You & Me For The Finest CANADIAN and CHINESE FOOD Saturday evening Bobby Lee Trio DOMINION HOTEL ZURICH 236-4371 Open Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 a.m.