HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1999-06-09, Page 24
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Exeter Times–Advocate
Wednepdayjune 9, 1998
In the News
Helen Johns re-elected after close race with Liberais
Continued from front page
committed to a strong Ontario." said Johns who will
now concentrate on trying to ease the riding's feeling
of job insecurity.
She will also get the communication level between
the people and the government back up, which she
said was slackened due the campain.
Johns ended her speech by telling her assembled
supporters "I am one lucky young lady."
Huron -Bruce returning officer Bruce Shaw said if
you coloured the riding like a graph, the part of
Bruce to the north would be almost solid red, the
area around the county boundary would be pink and
the south around Exeter would be a sea of blue.
"I'm pleased with how it went," a weary but smiling
Johns said the day after the elr
She said her team knew i ig to be a close
race with Lamont. Johns sa tifference was the
fact people simply like what Premier Mike Harris has
accomplished and the direction the Tories are headed
in.
She pointed out the rally 'for Harris in Goderich was
one of, if not the biggest, in the campaign.
She also had high praise her dedicated team of vol-
unteers from Exeter and Stephen and Usborne
Townships.
"I'm continually surprised by the amount of time
people volunteered to get me re-elected and have me
stay in politics," she said.
Rumours have it Johns will be made a cabinet min-
ister by Harris since three incumbent ministers,
including Education Minister Dave Johnson, were
knocked off by Liberals. Johns laughed at the
prospect.
"I think we should wait and see about that," she
said.
Johns does have a Masters of Business
Administration and has served as a parliamentary
assistant in a few business -orientated portfolios dur-
ing her first term in office.
Till that suspected appointment announcement is
made, Johns will focus on issues her constituents
have identified while she was knocking on doors on
the election traiL:
Those issues include finding out more information
on the funding formulas for rural municipalities and
South Huron Hospital's emergency room situation,
kidney dialysis at Goderich's Alexandria Marine and
General Hospital and getting the ball rolling on pro-
posed medical clinics in South Huron.
The Huron -Bruce constituency office is closed this
week so the staff and volunteers can take a breather
Johns will have to open a new office in Bruce
County to take care of her constituents there and will
probably move her Exeter office off Main St. when the
lease expires. Both the Exeter and Wingham offices
are expected to remain in those centres.
Johns was elected with fewer votes in the '95
provincial election with about 15,000 votes but the
Liberals and NDP were both far back battling neck
and neck for second with about 7,000 votes each.
Here is how communities in the Times -Advocate
coverage area voted:
•Exeter (including Exeter Villa): Johns, 1,492;
Lamont, 820; McQuail, 192; Freiburger, 36.
•Kippen: John$, 89; Lamont, 52; McQuail, 5;
Freiburger, 5.
*Zurich (including Bluewater Rest Home): Johns,
308; Lamont, 284; McQuail, 66; Freiburger, 30.
•Hensall (including Queensway Retirement Home):
Johns, 381; Lamont, 236; McQuail, 81; Freiburger,
18.
•St. Joseph: Johns, 173; Lamont, 132; McQuail, 40;
Freiburger, 4.
•Dashwood: Johns, 236; Lamont, 162; McQuail, 47;
Freiburger, 17.
•Grand Bend/Grand Cove Estates area: Johns, 390;
Lamont, 226; McQuail, 48; Freiburger, 13.
•Huron Park/Centralia area: Johns, 243; Lamont,
183; McQuail, 93; Freiburger, 11.
•Kirkton/Woodham: Johns, 132; Lamont, 71;
McQuail, 33; Freiburger, 5.
•Crediton: Johns, 223; Lamont, 154; McQuail 29;
Freiburger, 8.
Total votes in Huron -Bruce were 45,990 (including
spoiled and unmarked ballots) out of a possible
67,702 (the total names on the list of electors) for a
67.9 per cent turnout.
Shaw said there is ususally about 64 per cent
turnout in the former Huron riding, but he anticipat-
ed a turnout of 75-80 per cent for this election with
all the anti -Harris protests.
"It just didn't materialize," Shaw said. "It's
appalling. It was such a low turnout."
He said Huron -Bruce didn't have any of its deputy
returning officers or polling clerks call in sick or sim-
ply not show up without good reason like some other
ridings. Some ridings even reported bomb threats
keeping polling staff away.
— with files from Margaret Stapleton and Joe
Thompson of the Wingham Advance -Times. _
Tax break in store for Exeter ratepayers
Continued from front page
Bell pointed out those
with a home assessed less
than $100,000 would get
less of a break and those
with a higher valued
home would get a bigger
break.
The tax break was
achieved through a
reduction in the town,
county and education
portions of the mill. rate.
The town's budgeted total
revenue and surplus for
'99 is. $2,681,469 com-
pared with last year's
actual $2,462,058 total
revenue.
Because the town has to
balance it's books accord-
ing to the Municipal Act,
it is spending the same
amount as it takes in
which is up from last
year's figure. Any surplus
generated last year must
be accounted for in this
year's budget.
Bell called the '99 town
budget "a bench mark
budget" since it is the last
one before the town
amalgamates with
Stephen and Usborne
townships.
Little changes were
needed for the town's
department budgets like
the Exeter and Area Fire
Board, the Rec Board,
Exeter Public Cemetery,
sewer system or waste
management.
Council deferred discus-
sion on how to spend the
province's $240,000
Special Circumstances
Fund grant. The issue will
be on the June 14
Committee of the Whole
agenda.
Topping the wish list is
a new roof for the South
Huron Rec Centre, mov-
ing the Victoria Park
wading pool to the Rec
Centre, a new foul line
fence at Alvin Willert
Field, a skateboard pad
and many other items.
The new arena roof is
by far the most costly
item and could cost
$100,000 or more. The
town has a reserve fund
set up for the roof.
Re-elected. Huron -Bruce MPP (PC) Helen Johns is
tired but happy after winning a second term in office.
Health forum held
Continued from front page
open.
Hodder said doctors can't be forced ,to work in
Exeter but added the best thing for the town would
be for doctors to move to Exeter and raise families
here.
"Exeter is a lovely place," Hodder said, saying the
town needs a medical clinic to attract doctors here.
Adamson added that attracting doctors is an
"extremely competitive" task and said hiring nurse
practitioners — who can perform more duties than
a registered nurse — would help with the work-
load. South Huron has already hired a nurse prac-
titioner. -
South Huron director of nursing Maureen Cole
concluded the meeting by inviting the public to a
hospital meeting on June 16 at 7:30 p.m., which
will involve discussion of a possible medical clinic
for Exeter.
Harris and the Tories easily gain second term
EXETER — Ontario's
electorate has spoken
and they want another
dose of Mike.
Harris and his Tories
were returned to office
last Thursday by taking
59 of the Ontario
Legislature's 103 seats.
The Liberals captured
35 and the New
Democrats garnered
nine; three fewer than
needed to have official
status in the legislature.
The shortened 28 -day
t•.
election campaign was
waged primarily over
issues of health care
and education.
Voters clearly
endorsed the Tories'
'Commonsense
Revolution' by giving
the party a majority
government to continue
their policies into the
millennium.
Harris's win gives his
party their first back-to-
back majority govern-
ment in 28 years.
}� " • ar
t :+
•
Big items included in
Harris's second -term
platform entitled the
'Blueprint' include a 20
per cent tax cut and
spending on highways,
high-tech links, univer-
sities and other pies,
of the province's infra-
structure.
"We'll continue to
reach out. And I hope
that people will see that
some of these fears .that
were put forward (dur-
ing the election) were
simply not true," Harris
said during a news con-
ference in North Bay
over the weekend.
Harris also said he
hopes to get back to
business by shuffling his
cabinet within two
weeks.
He has five vacancies
to fill as a result of the
retirement of two minis-
ters and the defeat of
three others including
Education Minister
Dave Johnson.
The premier also dis-
cussed the possibility of
changing legislative
rules so the NDP could
retain party status but
no firm announcements
were made.
Voting chaos
The June 3 election
has been mired in alle-
gations some polling
officials were threat-
ened which led to
unstaffed offices and
voting chaos in some
ridings. A bomb threat
was even reported in a
Toronto riding.
Liberal leader Daltotl
McGuinty has eve'
called for the resigna
tion of Warren Bailie.
Ontario's Chie
Electoral Officer.
This was the first time
Ontario has not hat
enumerators prepare 1
voters list. Election
Ontario instead relief
on a permanent registr;
based on federal statis
tics.
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