Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1995-05-17, Page 3NEO V, NAv' 1195 THIFINCHANINYANCRINES W ,yy 41 $,>'3 t, Calling for an end...Thom Corbett, executive director for the Ontarlans for Re- sponsible Government is hoping people will remember the NDP's track record when voting on June 8. The ORG has plans to erect 69 billboards province -wide in their bid to unelect the NDP. ORG heightens unelection bid Continued from front page rio heard at. Queen's Park and he feels" the ORG campaign is an ex- ample of more city -based individu- als moving out into rural communi ties trying to tell those residents how to go about their business. "Maybe Bay Street is upset," he said. ORG executive director Thom Corbett said Klopp's comments are 'balderdash". Corbett was in Wingham Friday to discuss their latest billboard with the local media and to answer to Klopp's challenges. He agreed there was a political agenda to the billboards, hut added the ORG' is not endorsing any particular party. "In fact, in our lost Activist newsletter we responded to many of our membership's question on who should we support. Our an- swer is nobody. What we are say- ing to the people_ is look at your candidates and their policies and decide who is' hest to represent you," Corbett said. Corbett said the NDP's strategy this' time isnot to make any promis- es 'and if re-elected they will con- sult the puhlic'on policy. "Consultation has been a big part of their platform, But when you took .at things jike the government„ hearings on the farm labor legisla- tion, the majority of people at the hearings were opposed. The gov- ernment, despite that input, broeght it in'anyway. It was the same with long term health care. "This government has introduced closure 20 times to push through legislation. The Conservatives used closure four times,.,in 40 years, the Liberals four times in eight years...sure we're against the NDP. What we are sayitlg is this govern- rpent isn't worthy of support," Cor- bett said. As for the local MPP's claim the campaign may in fact be a good omen, Corbett contends the ORG has not been wrong on their at- tacks. He said the farm labor legis- lation stand forced the Conserva- tives to say they will scrap it and the Liberals to say they will amend it. The same with the RRSP propo- sal for MPPs instead of the Lucra- tive pension plan current in place. "We've heard some disturbing remarks from people that Bob Rae is no worse than any of the others. The NDP is not just a normal gov- ernment. Socialism hasn't worked. The debt and deficit happened be- cause of their ideological commit- ment to socialism." Campaign is going well Klopp says in early stages Incumbent NDP MPP Paul Klopp says the campaign trail has been kind so far and things appear positive. Klopp played host to Premier Bob Rae last week and told the Ad- vance -Times they were received warmly throughout the county and found support from a diverse cross section of residents. "I think people realize that we have' made some tough decisions .with a sense of fairness. They are saying that we have actually done this without the political rhetoric." Klopp said so far the biggest is- , sue he has 'keen questioned on is the preservation of health care in Ontario. He said his government is committed to keeping health care, as well as bringing down the deficit slowly and carefully. The MPP• said people have been recognizing that the deficit existed prior to the NDP's election in 1990. "Everybody, likes the talk of cutting taxes, but many are saying "who's kidding .who: The •defipit something you have to walk down very carefully. Klopp also said people have ex- pressed concern regarding the April 1, 1996 expiry of the social con- tract and transfer payments, Rae defends 'no promises' Continued from the front page despite attacks from various special interest groups and disheartened voters. The NDP Premier 'has shied away from provincially controver- sial issues and stuck to his strategy of directing attention to the federal transfer payment cuts and to the ex- tensive list of promises being made by his opponents. ."Our opponents are making two kinds of promises," he said in launching his attack on the provin- cial Liberal and- Progressive Con- n ,.servative parties,, "They say they will cut taxes and they arc dropping little hon bons along the way. 1 am very skeptical about this, Their promises aren't matched by what they do. We have to work in practi- cal ways. The solutions being pro- posed cost money. Promises on tax cuts are totally and utterly irrespon- sible...it's a fantasy with the degree of federal cuts to Ontario." `McLeod's plan is an 82 -page letter to Santa.' Rae on his Liberal opponent's promises As for the NDP's track record, Rae said they have made some'dif- ticult decisions during the past five years. "But, employment is improv- ing, farm bankruptcy is down, in- come is steady and farm organiza- tion memberships are increasing." Rae said these improvements in the province will he jeopardized by "the wild and extravagant promises made by the other side." Following the media scrum, Rae took some time to discuss other is-. sues with the local press. In terms of the social contract, Rae said the government will face some serious decisions inn April I, 1996 - the day both the social contract expires and transfer payments from the fed- eral government are reduced by nearly $1.2 Killion. "We will have a very real prob- lem. That money will not be com- ing back. We cannot increase the provincial deficit and the transfer payments will not be there," he said. Civil servants have no doubt cir- cled that date on their calendar. Most have gone without a pay in- crease since the social contract agreement was brought into effect more than two years ago. In addi- tion, many were forced to take un- paid days way from work. Some, such as teachers, were able to com- bine the so-called Rae days with March Break. In Huron, the result of such combinations translated into a two-week break as opposed to the traditional one week. Others, such as emergency room doctors, have selected more controversial paths. Doctors have chosen to re- strict their services to compensate for the social contract and in certain cases left emergency rooms without adequate coverage. Some public of- fices have simply opted for layoffs or attrition. Regardless, the issue of forced days off and frozen wage scales have left many in the public service seething. Rae counters this by say- ing he believes the only alternative to the social contract was 40,000 job cuts in the civil service and he will gladly take the heat for the "Rae days if it means preserving those positions. The Premier told the Advance - Times he believes a minister should he assigned to deal with the April 1. 1996 impact and make recom- mendations on how to deal with the expiry of the social contracCand the reduction in transfer payments. If legislation is required to deal with the crunch, that minister would be responsible for bringing it forward. "1 believe very strongly that this is a good approach. (Liberal leader Lyn) McLeod is playing 'let's pre- tend'. She is saying she will cut several million dollars in 30 days. The size of the problem will he in- creased. McLeod's plan is an 82 - page letter to Santa." Rae also attacked Conservative leader Mike Harris' plan to cut tax- es by 30 per cent. "He wants to turn Ontario, into the 51st state. Difficult decisions need to be made...not huge and sa'v'age"cuts:.,. The Premier was also critical of Harris' plan to reduce the number of MPPs. Rae said the plan will only hurt rural areas where strong government representation is need- ed.. Huron is an example of repre- sentation re -alignment with the pro- vincial and federal changes to electorate boundaries. ' In terms of the education system, Rae pointed to the Royal Commis- sion on Learning as a starting point to fix what is wrong with schools. The Advance -Times pointed to a May 8 television broadcast on a To- ronto station that featured inter- views with various teenagers. The teens were asked "What does V -E Day mean to you?" Almost all of the teens interviewed had no idea what V -E Day meant; a handful joked about V.D. Day (venereal disease). The Premier countered this by stating there is no reason why Ontario teens shouldn't have a sense of history, especially some- thing as important to democracy as the Allied Forces victory in Europe. Rae supported standardized test- ing for the, province, provided the students were being tested for what they had learned. He made no com- ments on destreaming, although his Tory counterpart Harris has prom-, ised to re -introduce competition into the education system, thereby eliminating destreaming. Nor did he comment on the proposal to in- stitute a College for Teachers, simi- lar to that of the College of Physi- cians and Surgeons. Those in the education field have responded an- grily to the suggestion as they feel it will diminish the power of the unions. He said the NDP will work to- wards developing a strong core cur- riculum, one that focuses on teach- ing students the basics and improving their pbrsonal skills. He said the RCL is a good document to direct how to get the education sys- tem back on track. Reform Ontario candidate enters campaign Neu' party hopes to challenge dor 30 MPP seats Dr. Kimble Ainslie The Reform ideology that gained serious momentum during the 1993 federal election campaign has been translated and adjusted into a new provincial mandate in Ontario. Dr. Kimble Ainslie, 44, a mar- keting and public affairs research specialist, has thrown his hat' into the Huron County provincial elec- tion campaign under the Reform Ontario Party. Ainslie is a founding member of the Reform Ontario wing and was elected president of the association in 1995. A Goderich native, Ainslie has also taught political science at the University of Western Ontario, Guelph University and York Uni-' versify. Ainslie said the provincial wing doesti bear : some whilosophical dif- ference than the federal Reform Party. "We're more out front with our `stand on democracy and are promoting direct citizen voting on provincial legislation." Ainslie said the Reformers are not worried about splitting the right wing wire being targeted by the Progressive Conservatives this election. "Harris hasn't grown any (in the polls). The Conservatives are dead in the water. We actually hope to .replace the Conservative Party in Ontario." ""Ainslie said the Reform Ontario Party has 18 candidates provincial- ly and is hoping to have 30 in place by the June 8 election. Jewitt pleased with response Huron Liberal candidate John Je- witt said he is pleased with the re- action his carhlpaign has -received so. far. Jewitt was in Wingham Tuesday to do some campaigning and speak with the Advance -Times on the re- action of the public to the election trial so far. The Liberal candidate said he has found people are deeply con- cerned with the deficit. "People understand that it is a threat to recovery and that the gov- ernment has to get its house In or- der. We can't have recovery until the deficit is addressed." He also said he has found people are concerned with the level of in- volvement they have in the demo- cratic process. He pointed to a Lib- eral policy that will allow for more free voting.' "An MPP should be Huron's voice in the legislature, not the leg- islatures voice in Huron," he said • quoting Liberal leader Lyn McLe- od. Jewitt,„ was also critical of the proposal to reduce the number of MPPs, stating those who have made the proposal don't understand the far reaches of rural Ontario and the need for representation. Ed. Note: Conservative candidate. Helen Johns die not respond press time to our inquiry. Council. X11 decide Wingham Town Council will make the decision on who will fill the 'seat left vacant by the resigna- tion of Bob Steffen, He resigned last month, citing health concerns. At a ' special council meeting Monday night, Finance and Man- agement Committee chairman Ward Robertson said they had ruled out the by-election option due to costs and opted to advertise lo- cally for interested parties for the council seat. The deadline .for submissions by those seeking the seat on council is May 26 at 5:00 p.m. 911 addressing is underway in East Wawanosh BELGRAVE - Fast Wawanosh Township council appointed roads superintendent Ralph Campbell last Tuesday evening to ride along with Bell Canada officials as the 9-1-1 municipal addressing• gets under way. A field worker was supposed to be in the township this week to be- gin the process. The process was scheduled to begin earlier this month in Morris Township. The Bell Canada field worker will plot all property with a resi- dence on it, in order to determine a numbering system for all of the homes in the township. A meeting has been scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on May 31 at the Blyth Community Centre to dis- cuss the road naming process. It was noted concession and side roads in the township that are not connected will have two dif- ferent names. But, Bell Canada would like to have roads that ex- tend into the next township to have the same name. That is the purpose of the meet- ing in Blyth at the end of the month. Council will hold a special meet- ing on May 29 to vote on the candi- dates. Voting by the councillors in public session will*continue until one candidate has received a major- ity of council support. It is expected that the new town councillor will be sworn in at the June 5 regular meeting of council. Fireworks Available Holyrood General Store 5 Roadhouse Restaurant = Tuesday Meal Deals Buy one entree get 2nd entree '/2 PRICE of equal or lesser value for between 4 & 10 p.m. Hwy #86 357-4492 East of WIn hem Gan s . ecials Wingham & District ter. ".Community Living Association NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING The Wingham & District Community Living Association will be holding it's Annual; General Meeting for the 1994/1995 fiscal year on Thursday June 15, 1995 at 7:30p.m.atthe . Wingham Armouries Everyone Welcome! R.S.V.P: 357-3562 by June 9, 1995/ FILM :DEVELOPING 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1111 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 COLOUR PRINT FILM DEVELOPED & PRINTED ID 4" SUPER SIZE GLOSSY OR MATTE PRINTS In 0 IN 0 0 0 0 0 EXPOSURE* 7.99 12or15*$4.99 EXP. 36 Exp.* $10.99 0 %roddr\ Caronretch) 0 s�rtam 2nd Set of Pmts for an addt „ charge at me 11 more than the number of exposures are prnttd a dirge for each extra pont app NOTE 3rd or more sets at hme of ong+naf developing and , • ng AO for each port • 1,7 McPHEE PHARMACY 111 Josephine St., Wingham 357-1243 0 0 0 0 Don't miss Prlm�°lime ('ounit '� Irilntle to George Jones In 14'inghuni istl'r-ic• TiA n Hall -S ICI F,► 1T- Satnrdul' & Srurduty..biut• 2'-28, at .3 p. m. 1 Is ' Players:, (:art ,Strrckinu, \1 (raford. Kimberly Richard., and Steel t;utter t Treat Al Rri.rrr; Dancer.: Triple vision howic k r.1 Laud! Insurance Company • 110.1!* RIME• &dear go 5th year Proudly ,upporrr'd • 44 GLIM ('all the box ufflce al (519) 347-.tttu2 for ticket information