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Times Advocate, 1998-10-21, Page 18Wednesday. October 21, 1498 Exeter Times -Advocate Community 17 LETTER TO THE EDITOR Paul Steckle defends his position on gun control legislation Dear Editor: The purpose of this letter is twofold. Firstly. in Tight of recent events In Ottawa, 1 would like to take this , opportunity to relay relevant information pertaining to certain occurrences that have taken place over the course of the past couple of months. Secondly, I would like to respond to the defamatory allegation made by Brian Richardson, former Reform Party candidate in the riding of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex, in his letter to the Editor which was printed in the October 7, 1998 edition of the Exeter Times Advocate. As most of the residents of Huron -Bruce are aware, Bill C-68, (the federal government's controversial pack- age of firearms legislation), was given royal assent on December 5, 1995. As many are also aware. regardless of partisan sanctions taken against me, 1 personally voted against my panty's legislation at all three parlia- mentary stages of this Bill. With that in mind, I believe that it is now important for me to elaborate upon my reasoning for the aforementioned stance. When this issue'first came to light, ,my offices in Goderich and Ottawa were bombarded with a constant stream of letters, calls, faxes and direct representa- tions. Although some were supportive of the Bill, the vast majority of the correspondence, (for a wide variety of reasons), vehemently opposed certain- provisions contained within the proposed law. These representa- tions were, for the most part, made by private citizens and civil employees; and not by organizations such as _ merican based National. Rifle Association. In short, my position was securely based upon commen- tary received from the electoraterather than on the rhetoric being distributed by certain special interest, groups. The, basic argument that was brought forward is simple; how will registering the legal guns of law- abiding citizens reduce the criminal misuse.of firearms? Before 1 continue, your readers should understand that Bill C-68. for discussion purposes, can be sub- divided Into two very distinctive categories; the firearm registration package and the crime and border control measures of the act. The aforementioned registration system will require all classes of firearms to be listed in a national registry, to be made available to government and law enforcement oMcial across the nation. in addi- tion, gun owners will encounter. a new and consider- ably more complex and costly. (both to individual citi- zens registering and to government coffers in general), level of bureaucracy. With this in mind, it important to mention that the myth that 1 do not support gun con- trol in general is completely false. I fully support mea- sures that will help to save lives and make our streets safer, however, 1 simply do not support this registra- tion system which is a wasteful expenditure of public funds; money that would be more beneficial if we put it into the enforcement of existing laws. In addition to the above. the Bill also had many posi- tive aspects such as; increased powers for, Canadian Customs officials to prevent unlawful entry of illegal firearms at the border; a lifetime prohibition against possessing a firearm for those individuals who crimi- nally misuse a gun and; an entrenchment of minimum penalties for those convicted of certain "identified" crimes with a gun. I am pleased to say that i supported _the above crime control provisions of Bill C-68 in Caucus, in public and in the House of Commons. In fact, i even argued, unsuccessfully, that the Bill should be split to permit Members to vote on the two sections separately. This is a position that 1 continue to advo- cate today. Despite my best efforts, the Bill remained whole and, asmy vote must be either yea or nay, 1 was forced to vote nay. Please don' t, sake decision li by Michele Greene. STRATFORD - A deci- sion to- close' schools - shouldn't be made quickly or taken lightly, according to a .South Perth Centennial School parent. Michael Brine, a mem- . ber of the Rannoch school's parent council, made the most recent presentation on potential school closures to trustees of the Avon Maitland District School Board in Stratford last "Tuesday night. "I'm not here to give a commercial for 'South Perth. I am concerned with the process of school closures," he said. On October 27 in Stratford, trustees will make ' a decision on whether or not to accept a report which would begin studies into 28 schools slated for poten- tiat closure or conversion. - "i have a real. problem with having ono day set aside for such an impor- tant decision," said 13rine. Although he said the parent council under- stands the funding crunch - and consequences of not eliminating excess space. • • • tly he urged trustees not to close schools., "If you close schools, they -are gone,' he said. ,ile •encouraged the • trustees to work with the parents in finding .a solu- tion. "Work with us because, if you don't, we will fight you every step of the , way," he said. Pain reliever Money to ease pain. Lucan Knights of Columbus Deputy Grand'Knight Theo Sentjens hands Lucan Arthritis campaign chairperson Marguerite McRoberts a $100 cheque. The 37 Lucan Arthritis campaign volunteers raised $3,621. 5S during this.year's campaign: (photo/contributed) Dashwood drug bust 0,ASHWOO1) - The O1'P Regional. Drug Unit, with the help of. the, Exeter, OPP, executed a search warrant at a farmhouse near ' Dashwood and found a.small quantity bf 'drugs and a stolen motor- cyde on Oct. 15 at about 11, a.m. Rusk said charges are 'pending.' Youth charged with, theft. LUCAN — A male youth was caught by London OPt' behind the wheel of a reported stolen van after' the van was seen leaving 13iddulph Central School at.2:20 a.m. on Oct. 11. The van had been reported stollen from Lucan earlier that night. The youth, who cannot be named under the Young Offenders Act, is charged with possession of stolen property over $5.000. As 1 have often stated, this issue is. far from over. In fact, as recently as September 22, 1998, we once again debated this matter in the House of Commons. A debate that was sparked by the second "Fed -up" rally. (both of which 1 attended), on the front lawn of Parliament Hill. The matter was further stirred by the introduction• of a Reform motion calling upon the House to "condemn" the government. and further demanded that the government repeal Bill C-68 in its entirety. As indicated in Mr. Richardson's letter, 1 did not support or oppose this motion. Rather than vote to condemn my government. -(which if successful, could be construed as a"vote of non -confidence - hence creat- Ing•the legal need for a costly election less than two years into a five year mandate), I opted to employ a Parliamentary tactic designed to remind Cabinet that my feelings on Bill C=68 have not changed or become diluted. 1 was further concerned that, if the motion was accepted, we would run the risk of forfeiting the many positive and long overdue aspects of the legislation. In short, 1 could not. in good conscience, support the motion. which was not properly refined. as it could have and should have been. With respect to Mr. Itichardson's editorial. 1 regret that he has taken this important topic to this partisan level. I would have gladly discussed the matter with him had he approached me on the topic. My actions on _Bit! C-68, from -beginning to present, make my thoughts on the Bill dear. With that being said, 1 will not offer further comment on Mr: Richardson's letter as 1 am confident that the people of Huron -Bruce will understand and support my reasoning with respect to this issue. - Sincerely, PAUL. SUCKLE, MP Iluron-Bruce New Grand Bend sidewalk the result of safety concerns GRAND BEND — Council is picking up the cost of the construction of a sidewalk in front of 28 Eighty One Crescent in response to `safety con- cerns,from property owner Peter Warner. The cost, according to administrator Paul Turnbull, willfall somewhere between 53,000- S4.000. Warner originally appeared before council on Oct. 5, along, with Kim MacLachlan, who leases - part of the property. Maclachlan ,was concerned for children because puddles forming during heavy rains and ice during the winter cause chil- dren to walk on the road. - • "It's just not safe," she said. In exchange for council paying the cost of the new sidewalk. Warner relinquished that section - of his property to the town. The town will also be building a sidewalk in front of the TD bank property. The town passed' a bylaw to pull the money needed for the eonstruction out, of the waste dis- posal fund. Construction began yesterday. 'Other notes from Monday night's council meet- - ing: A HARBOUR COMMISSION? • 'Coun. Bob Mann suggested council pursue the idea of forming a harbour commission in place -of the existing harbour committee. Ile said with re- structuring in the future. it's necessary 'to make sure the harbour is protected.' . While decisions made by the harbour com- mittee are subject to council approval, a harbour commission would be', according to' Mann, "an autonomous. self -funding body." "1 think it's an excellent idea," Coun. Phil Ma- guire said. ' Mann said council should meet with its solicitor to explore ' which' steps to - take in forming the commission. ' VOLUNTEER TEAM FOR 2001 GAMES Coun. Shirley Andraza will be Heading Grand , Bend's volunteer team :for the 2001 Summer Games. Mayor Cam Ivey said volunteers will be looking after things such as parking, information booths and will be assisting with some • of the games. The work will involve meetings in London and Turnbull said he hopes ,a strong pool of vol- unteers can be formed over the next three years.