At the same time, I condemn this NDP government for its cavalier attitude toward our community of Powerview-Pine Falls and the welfare of our families. I note with interest the fact that this government gave Tembec $2.1 Million to stop logging in our Provincial forests just months before Tembec locked out its employees, and this government failed to guarantee jobs with that payment, in spite of warnings from me. Just months later, Tembec locked its employees out of their jobs, and now the Mill will shut down. Right from the start Tembec had no intention to re-start the Mill – this is what I heard from employees as I visited with them on the picket line. I warned this NDP government, but it refused to hear these concerns. Instead, the NDP insisted on making the $2.1 Million payment to Tembec without insisting on job guarantees, and the fate of 270 jobs was sealed.

Let’s compare the $2.1 Million gift from the NDP government to Tembec as opposed to the pathetic $1 Million readjustment fund paid to the Community Adjustment Committee. The NDP gave more than 2 times the money to Tembec than it did to our community and only a few months later the lockout began. $1 Million is a mere pittance when compared to the amount paid to the Pinawa Adjustment fund when it was announced that the Pinawa site of the Atomic Energy of Canada was shutting down nearly 15 years ago. Pinawa and Powerview-Pine Falls are comparable communities in the sense that both communities are nearly one-industry towns. The government of the day provided a $20 Million Community Adjustment Fund to assist in job development as a result of the planned AECL shutdown – however the plant has not completely shut down because there are still approximately 300 jobs at that site, and I understand many more jobs are planned there.

Compare this to the Tembec Mill in Powerview-Pine Falls where 270 jobs will be lost, and none will be retained. The government of the day provided $20 Million nearly 15 years ago to Pinawa, yet this NDP government only offers $1 Million to Powerview-Pine Falls – shameful!

An adjustment fund of at least $20 Million should be made available for Powerview-Pine Falls to ensure that all possibilities and probabilities of job creation are explored. Our government should explore all possibilities with regard to locating more government department employees to the region, including for example, more positions in the Department of Conservation, Water Stewardship, Tourism, Parks and of course, Manitoba Hydro, to name a few. An immediate plan is necessary! However, I won’t hold my breath after witnessing the total lack of response from the Premier and the Minister of Labour who had to be forced by myself and Tembec employees over the course of a 100 day period last Fall to even visit the community. I hope that the response of this government is more immediate, however after the Fall of 2011, when the Progressive Conservatives become the Government of Manitoba, I promise all of North Eastern Manitoba, that there will be a satisfactory response by our Provincial Government to ease the burden on Powerview-Pine Falls.

More can and should be done to develop the tremendous tourism potential of the region, including the extension and improvement of the Broadlands Road to and along the North Shore of Lake Lac du Bonnet, and to encourage the establishment of businesses in our community to take advantage of the anticipated increases in traffic due to the construction of the East side road. The relocation of the Bi-Pole III Hydro Transmission line to the East side of Lake Winnipeg would also serve to benefit our community.

All of these initiatives require a government that is proactive in its approach. The opportunity is now, and the government must act!

August 20, 2010 The NDP government’s dithering is hurting cattle producers battered by excess moisture conditions, said Progressive Conservative Agriculture Critic Cliff Graydon.

“We were very disappointed by NDP Agriculture Minister Stan Struthers when he said he’s continuing to ‘monitor’ the situation. The hurt has been obvious for weeks,” Graydon said. “We’ve spoken to affected producers and seen the flooded fields and pastures firsthand. The province needs to immediately announce short- and long-term strategies to help producers deal with this disaster.”

For some cattle producers, this is the third year in a row they’ve been hit by excess moisture conditions. Graydon said the financial impact is devastating, particularly as producers still try to recover from the effects of BSE and other trade-related issues like Country-of-Origin Labelling.

“A multi-pronged approach is needed now. A per head payment has to be considered. Some producers will need freight assistance to move feed. Help to restore damaged forage stands and pastures is critical,” said Graydon. “Producers have been raising these types of strategies for weeks, but the NDP government refuses to move. They act as though the problem doesn’t exist.”

“A vibrant cattle industry is so important to our rural communities and our overall provincial economy, but this NDP government seems oblivious to it,” said Graydon. “So much for the NDP’s promise they made prior to the provincial budget to ‘eke and scrape together funds’ to help support farmers going through these types of challenges. They should honour their word.”

If you disagree with this cutback, I would strongly recommend that you write to the Minister of Transportation at the following address:

Honourable Steve Ashton
Minister of Infrastructure & Transportation
203 – 450 Broadway Ave.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 0V8

Email him at: mininfratran@leg.gov.mb.ca

Or phone him toll-free at: 1-800-282-8069

If all Manitobans call, perhaps we can change this very short-sighted decision by the NDP.

July 14, 2010 

Enforcement of Manitoba’s bans on talking on hand-held electronic devices, texting while driving and smoking in vehicles with children in the car starts tomorrow, Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton announced today.

“The message to Manitobans is this - when you’re on the road, keep your eyes on the road and your hands upon the wheel. And when there are kids in the car, butt out your cigarettes,” said Ashton. “We are increasing safety on our roads and promoting healthier living for children. And, as of tomorrow, those measures will be backed up with fines.”

The amendments to the Highway Traffic Act, which will be proclaimed into law tomorrow, July 15, both carry a fine of $199.80.

“There’s a direct connection between use of electronic devices and dangerous driving,” said RCMP Insp. Mark LeMaistre, of the Manitoba Association of Chiefs of Police. “Study after study has shown that drivers who talk or text on a hand-held electronic devices while operating a motor vehicle significantly increased their crash risk. In an effort to improve road safety and healthy living, the province has legislated two new laws that take effect today. Enforcement actions begin tomorrow provincewide and these new laws will carry a fine.”

“The vehicle is one environment where parents can influence their children’s susceptibility to smoking in the future,” said Dr.
Annette Schultz, an assistant professor in the faculty of nursing at the University of Manitoba and an investigator at the psychosocial oncology and cancer nursing research group at the St. Boniface Hospital Research Centre. “And our research suggests that enforced vehicle smoking bans support youth in maintaining a resolve to remain smoke free, regardless of the smoking status of the parent.”

British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island have laws banning the use of hand-held cell phones while driving and Alberta recently introduced such legislation. Several jurisdictions prohibit smoking in vehicles with children present, including British Columbia, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick.

Manitoba’s new law allows cellphone use while driving to make telephone calls if the equipment is a hands-free device and used in a hands-free manner. The law also allows use of a hand-held cellphone, in an emergency, to call the police, fire or ambulance service.

CELLPHONE USE FACTS

• Drivers who text are 23 times more likely to be involved in a collision.
• Drivers who use cellphones are four times more likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves.
• The number one source of driver inattention is cellphones.  Drivers talking on cellphones are nearly twice as likely to have rear-end collisions.

The first phase of the project is the construction of the East side road from PR #304 (near Manigotagan and Hollow Water) to Berens River First Nation. The first phase follows the existing Rice River Road and the Winter road alignment, which eliminates the need to establish new rights of way and it disturbs wildlife habitat as little as possible. This results in little environmental impact. 80% of the first phase of road construction is along existing rights-of-way.

The first phase provides improved safe and more reliable transportation between communities, which will be achieved through the following steps:

a) Upgrading the existing 76km Rice River Road toward the Bloodvein River,
b) Constructing the 12km road beyond the Bloodvein River to Bloodvein First Nation Community by utilizing the existing Winter road and the existing Hydro Transmission right-of-way, and,
c) Constructing the East side road from Bloodvein First Nation to Berens River.

Transfer this to our Provincial Debt which is about to balloon to over $26 Billion. If interest rates double (which may almost be certain) to 5 ½%, the interest paid on that debt will double from $715 Million per year to $1.43 Billion per year – an increase of $715 Million. The Provincial Government does not have the option of going bankrupt like that young couple does – its only option is to cut costs by cutting services and programs or to increase taxes to make up the difference – or both.

Is it responsible to increase the Province’s debt because interest rates are low? Obviously not! It would instead be prudent to pay down the debt – something that the NDP will never do!

We used the Spring Session to introduce new policies that would keep our families safer, protect our vulnerable children, and grow our economy. We also highlighted the waste and mismanagement within the NDP Government, including a $1.75 Billion unnecessary expenditure on the longer West-side Bipole III transmission route.

As your MLA, I recognize that residents in our communities want to live here, work here, and raise their families here. Many people have had to leave our community against their wishes to find suitable employment elsewhere in order to provide for their families. Continued expansion at Milner Ridge Correctional Institute will create much needed and well paying employment opportunities that will allow our residents to stay in our communities. Our communities will grow and prosper. When people have to leave their communities to find employment, our small businesses suffer and this results in less services in our communities.

I encourage those that are seeking employment to watch for ads in your local newspapers, apply at the 11th floor of the Woodsworth Building in Winnipeg, or go to the Province of Manitoba website, the Justice Department of the Civil Service Commission for more information on these employment opportunities

I fully support the expansion of Milner Ridge Correctional Institute. I have been working very hard to ensure the Government recognizes the need to create employment opportunities in Eastern Manitoba. The expansion at Milner Ridge is a start, we have a long way to go and I will continue to pressure the Government to make it happen, and sooner rather than later!

June 9, 2010 - The child welfare system is in a ‘state of chaos,’ and change is urgently required, says Progressive Conservative Leader Hugh McFadyen.

“Premier Greg Selinger needs to take immediate steps to address the critical problems in the child welfare system and ensure the sad legacies of Phoenix Sinclair, Gage Guimond, and all the other vulnerable children who have fallen through the cracks, are not repeated,” said McFadyen.

In October 2006, Family Services Minister Gord Mackintosh feigned outrage at the state of his child welfare system and the death of Phoenix Sinclair. He asked reporters, ‘If it takes a village to raise a child, what the heck happened to this village called Manitoba?’ before promising to fix the broken system. He concluded by vowing to ‘ensure we leave behind the destructive history of child welfare.’

“Four years later, we’re hearing the system is getting worse, not better, despite the minister’s platitudes and broken promises. That means more vulnerable children are falling through the cracks,” said PC Critic Bonnie Mitchelson. “Yesterday, the minister threw in the towel by blaming a breakdown in too many families for his system in chaos. When will he be accountable for the child welfare system that his government has so badly damaged?”

The Progressive Conservatives are calling on the government to call an urgent public committee of the legislature with the Acting Children’s Advocate to identify the extent of chaos in the system and begin the process of developing solutions.

“It’s time the NDP stop stonewalling so we can get down to business and address this overwhelming problem,” Mitchelson said.

Winnipeg Free Press - April 30,2010 

An employee-led buyout of the Pine Falls paper mill has passed a couple of key hurdles, giving a union official hope that the facility could reopen by September.

On Thursday, Cam Sokoloski, president of United Steelworkers Local 3-1375, said the results of a mill-purchase feasibility study, paid for by the province, was “favourable.” And the buyout group had also lined up a Winnipeg group to provide some of its financing.

“We’re moving forward,” Sokoloski said.

The province said Thursday it was prepared to come to the table to supply up to 30 per cent of the financing for a buyout if there is a viable plan in place.

Labour Minister Jennifer Howard said it’s her understanding that it would take $100 million to purchase the mill, get it up and running and “see it through until it could be profitable.”

“We would not be available to give total funding for that. There would have to be other partners,” Howard said, adding that the province has not received an official request from the buyout group.

The Pine Falls paper mill has been idle since Sept. 1, 2009 when Montreal-based Tembec locked out union employees during contract negotiations. Late last year, it announced it would close the facility and put it up for sale. Nearly 300 workers lost their jobs. Tembec said at the time that if a buyer could not be found soon, the plant would be mothballed.

On Thursday, in a show of support for the Pine Falls community, members of the legislative assembly unanimously supported a motion by Conservative MLA Gerald Hawranik (Lac du Bonnet) urging the province to lend a viable buyout group money to purchase the plant.

Sokoloski said the employee-led group seeking to purchase the facility includes both former union workers and management staff. Sagkeeng First Nation has also been involved in the discussions as a partner, he said.

Tembec officials could not be reached for comment on Thursday. The company is keen to unload the plant, but the buyout group wants more information about what liabilities — including environmental — they would be inheriting.

The purchase group also has yet to receive a report on the status of the company pension plan, Sokoloski said. “We know it’s underfunded. We don’t know (by) how much yet,” he said.

The would-be buyers were also awaiting word Thursday from Tembec about a request to once again extend the negotiation process. The company’s board was to discuss the request at a Wednesday meeting. Tembec had set strict deadlines for disposing of the facility.