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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 2015-10-07, Page 3Wednesday, October 7, 2015 • Lucknow Sentinel 3 Federal candidates talk agriculture, science in Holmesville CONTINUED FROM > PAGE 2 However, he questioned whether people can trust that Stephen Harper is "protect- ing supply management" and claimed the PCs are keeping "Canadians in the dark." Lobb said the intent of agreements such as the TPP is to "reduce tariffs "I don't know how much clearer you can be." He said when the Liberal Party was in power during the 1990s and early -2000s they "concluded no deals of any significance; before claiming the past decade has been "the best 10 years in agriculture" in Canada's history. Splettstoesser said her party is supportive of trading but she questioned the wisdom of locking the country into such long-term agreements. She said in some ways "foreign interests have more rights than Canadian prop- erty owners': "What about fair trade instead of free trade," she asked. The discussion then moved from agriculture to the treat- ment of Canada's veterans. Thompson said the Harper government has treated vet- erans "so shabbily" that they have created groups to advo- cate against his party. He said if elected, the Lib- erals would provide benefits such as life-long pensions for injured soldiers and four years of paid education for veterans who wish to return to school. Shuttered Veterans Affairs offices would also be reo- pened, he said. "Just give veterans the respect they deserve," Thompson said. Lobb claimed the Con- servatives have "modern- ized" the Veteran Affairs department and made gains in providing benefits to sol- diers with Post -Traumatic Syndrome Disorder and other mental health issues. He said his party has cut down the amount of time it takes veterans to receive ben- efits and they can now meet with Veterans Affairs staff in person instead of receiving a package in the mail. In response, Creces quipped that a lot of the meetings "Con- servatives had (with veterans) were in a courthouse" He claimed $1.13 billion of the $3 billion budget for Vet- erans Affairs was unspent. Creces said the NDP would create long-term care facilities for veterans and help pay for their funerals. Additionally, he said his party would "treat all veter- ans similarly" and get rid of the current class system. "It doesn't matter if you served in Bosnia or in Afghanistan, you served your country," Creces said. Splettstoesser said govern- ments have been sending sol- diers into war without con- sidering the potential costs of when they return to Canada. "We will support our veterans." The four were asked if they feel there would be any opportunities for famers if marijuana was legalized or decriminalized. Splettstoesser said it would be highly regulated and she didn't personally feel it would present many opportunities. However, she did acknowl- edge it would bring in a signif- icant amount of tax revenue. Creces said the NDP sup- ports decriminalization mainly on the philosophy that tax dollars shouldn't be used to put people through the court system for cases that are usually thrown out. Thompson said while the Liberal party is in favour of the legalization of marijuana, he had not thought about it in terms of agriculture. He said they want to "avoid a situation where we are turning young people into criminals" and that legaliza- tion is not about making access to marijuana easier or encouraging its use. "It's about regulating and getting it out of the hands of criminal gangs;" Thompson said. "It's a progressive move' The Conservative party is completely against the legal- ization of marijuana, Lobb said. He said the "cost to society" of such a potential decision "far outgrows" anytaxrevenue:' Referring back to the origi- nal question, he said there would not likely be any opportunities for farmers because the cost to produce pharmaceutical -grade mari- juana is very high. "There are much better and practical uses of farm- land," he added. The current situation in Syria has become a hot issue on the campaign trail, and local candidates were asked how they feel about Canada accepting refugees, and potentially decreasing health care benefits for them. Thompson said there are a number of Canadians who are concerned that this could potentially open up the doors to "admitting an endless number of people into Canada': He said Canada should play a leadership role and the Liberals would admit 25,000 displaced Syrians immediately. Lobb said the Conserva- tives would not offer "any more or less" in terms of health care to Syrian refugees. He said the party is open to helping but it should be done in a controlled manner. He pointed out that the U.S. is only taking in 10,000 refugees, the same number the Conservatives have pro- posed, while adding that neighbouring countries around Syria are not taking any. However, Splettstoesser criticized Lobb for "picking the countries with the worst records'; stating that coun- tries smaller in size than Canada, such as Germany, have pledged to take in more refugees. "I am not suggesting we follow them, but we need to get away from prejudice," she said. "Not every person from Syria is a potential terrorist" Creces said the federal government should take a lesson from local initiatives to sponsor Syrian refugees. He said the PCs have cre- ated a "huge culture of fear" and should stop discrimina- nwmo NUCLEAR WASTE MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION tion based on religion. He said health care could be better both for "Canadi- ans and people who are coming here." The final written question of the evening queried candi- dates on whether they feel enough is being done to ensure foreign food products are up to Canadian standards Splettstoesser said cuts to the Canadian Food Inspec- tion Agency (CFIA) have left fewer resources to protect Canadian consumers. She said while she believes Canada has some of the highest standards for food inspection, she can only hope other coun- tries would have the same. "We have to make sure we are applying Canadian stand- ards to products coming into our country," Creces said. He added that the federal government should "have the backbone to say 'no"' if other countries don't want to live up to Canada's standards. Thompson said under the Harper government, the CFIA has not had the resources to deliver proper inspection. "Even when the govern- ment identifies a problem, it takes too long to develop a solution," he said. "The Lib- erals would put procedures in place to make sure food is safe." Lobb said the CFIA has a great track record and some of the highest standards in Canada. Speaking on the closure of SOCIETE DE GESTION DES DECHETS NUCLEAIRES government libraries and research centres, as well as "destruction of records'; Cre- ces said the Harper govern- ment has been "allergic to inconvenient information." He said there is a need to bring back "scientific fund- ing" and that there is often not enough data to base decisions on. "If you don't know the truth, you can't react," Cre- ces said. Thompson claimed the Conservatives have "brutal- ized science, scientific research and knowledge." He said they have become a government that "runs on an ideology instead of evi- dence -based policy making". Lobb said his party has invested more in science than any other government. He claimed the national media and opposition parties have conjured up the idea of a "war against science': In response to the notion of "destruction of records, Lobb said they have in fact been digitized, not destroyed. "That's the way it works in 2015," Lobb said. "It doesn't have to be all paper files." Splettstoesser said some Green Party candidates, who have worked as government - employed scientists, have claimed their budgets were slashed by up to 75 per cent under the Harper government. She urged that the work of NWMO Learn More Centre The Township of Huron -Kinloss is one of several communities in the early stages of learning about Adaptive Phased Management (APM), Canada's plan for the safe, long-term management of used nuclear fuel. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is working collaboratively with the community to advance preliminary assessment studies. If you would like to learn about APM, meet NWMO staff, ask questions or offer your thoughts, please drop in to the NWMO community office and Learn More Centre in Ripley. Everyone is welcome. scientists should be pro- tected so it can be used in policy-making. In his closing remarks, Thompson called this elec- tion "the most important" in a generation. He told those in attend- ance when casting their vote they would be deciding what leadership they want, stating they could choose "more of the same" or the "positive, optimistic vision" he feels Trudeau will provide as Prime Minister. Creces said the "reds and blues" want voters to be scared of the NDP. He believes because of past governments the "next generation of voters feel like they don't have a choice" and that Canada's "arms and mind" is "closing". He said the NDP could be the change on the road to "progress and prosperity:' Splettstoesser said when it comes to her, "what you see is what you get." She promised to "help restore good government'"' "Positive vision and hard work will beat the tired sta- tus quo," she said. Huron -Bruce incumbent Lobb closed out the debate by stating "only a Conserva- tive government can be trusted to protect family farms, keep taxes low and protect benefits for all Canadians." "Since 2006, we've taken action," he said. NWMO Learn More Centre (Huron -Kinloss) 80 Huron Street, Ripley ON 519.386.6711 Wednesday Friday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.