by Connie Tabbert
Editor
COBDEN — The Cobden Agriculture Hall wasn’t awash in the colour blue, but there were a lot of blue people there as they were attending the 10th annual New Year’s Levee hosted by Progressive Conservatives Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MP Cheryl Gallant and MPP John Yakabuski.
Whitewater Region Township Mayor Hal Johnson was the emcee for the afternoon event held on Saturday, Jan. 3. By 2 p.m., the hall was filling with people who had opportunity to enjoy the delicious food prepared and set out by members of the Cobden Agriculture Society, visit with each other, renew their membership and not only shake hands and wish new year greetings to the MP and MPP, but to two MPPs who are vying for the leadership of the provincial Progressive Conservatives.
Nepean-Carleton MPP Lisa MacLeod shook many hands on Saturday as did Nipissing MPP Vic Vedeli. Absent was Barrie MP Patrick Brown, who intended to attend but couldn’t due to the weather. Not expected to attend were candidates Whitby-Oshawa MPP Christine Elliott and Lambton-Kent-Middlesex MPP Monte McNaughton.
Voting for the leadership will be held on May 3 and 7 with the announcement on May 9. To vote a member must be paid up and in good standing by Feb. 28. Voting will take place in each riding, and depending on the size, there could be more than one polling station.
During the levee, each person who went through the reception line had their photo taken with the MP and MPP.
Prior to the event starting, MP Gallant said, this event is a tradition started by governors-general many years ago. Once a year they invite people from the community to come and say hello, she added.
“Often, it’s the only time of year we have a chance to say hello to those who live in the outer corners of the community or who are only in the area for Christmas,” she said.
Looking to this year, MP Gallant said different aspects of the family benefits package will be passed into law.
“This is something that was passed in the previous election,” she said “We couldn’t bring it into force until the books were balanced and we’re just about there. That involves income sharing/splitting for tax purposes,” she said.
The federal government will also increase the universal child care plan as well as getting rid of the family tax credit in favour of a benefit that will go towards all families, she added.
“There are also many different laws being tabled and all for the safety and security of Canadians,” MP Gallant said.
MPP Yakabuski said he wishes health and happiness for the people of Renfrew County, he said.
“We hope the things we’ve all been working on together at all three levels of government start to show more signs of being successful this year,” he said. “We’re always working on Highway 17.”
The MPP said one of the biggest issues and concerns for residents is electricity costs.
“It affects everybody, whether you live alone, a senior couple living alone, a small business, large business, everybody’s affected by electricity rates and we sure would like to see some changes in government direction on that,” MPP Yakabuski said.
However, he doesn’t see any changes because the current Liberals, who are in power, are “myopic” in their view on the electricity file, he said. The auditors report was damming regarding the energy policy in the province and instead of the Liberals saying they were going to make changes, they challenged the auditor on his report.
As for the levee, the MPP said while people enjoy the event, “The population that enjoys these is changing and getting older. We’ve seen our numbers drop a little bit over the last few years.”
In 2006, there were about 1,500 who attended, while this year, it’s not just the age affecting the event, but the snowstorm outside, he said.
Following the hand-shaking and well wishes, the MP and MPP addressed the small crowd left in the agriculture hall.
Mayor Johnson introduced the MP and MPP, telling a story about how he met each one for the first time. The MP was wearing gum-rubber boots because it was during a major flood while for the MPP it was at a snowmobile banquet.
MP Gallant congratulated Mayor Johnson to his rise in power.
“I’m pleased to see how you worked up from public works to the mayor’s position,” she said.
Addressing the crowd, MP Gallant said the levee is a way of ushering in the new year. She recalled presenting MP Commendation Medals prior to the start of the levee as well as the special pins she presented earlier in the fall to World War II veterans. She noted so far she has presented 180 pins in this riding alone.
She also thanked Kevin Vickers, the Sergeant-At-Arms on Parliament Hill who killed the terrorist inside the building. She also thanked the unarmed guards who ensured all the people inside the buildings at the time were safe.
MPP Yakabuski said the people of Ontario deserve better than what the current government is providing. However, that won’t happen for at least three more years, he said.
He encouraged those who didn’t have an up-to-date membership to get one so they could vote for who they want to be the next provincial leader of the Progressive Conservatives.
MPP Yakabuski said Prime Minister Stephen Harper may not be the flashiest person, but he does have a steady hand. He said the polls are now showing PM Harper is the best man for the top job in Canada.
2014 was a good year for the MPP as he was re-elected to represent the people in this riding.
The MPP also thanked his staff, not only for the help they provide to him, but to the constituents in his riding.
“We do the stuff people see,” he said. “Our staff does the work that is not seen. They do the work that makes me look good, even when I’m not.”
He will continue to work for the people of this riding, regardless of what party they support.
“We want to make Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke a better place to live,” he said. “2015 will be challenging provincially.”
The current government “seems to have its head in the sand,” he said. The Liberals were elected because of mistakes made by the PCs during the election.
The recent auditor general’s report shows the current government “is going down an awful lot of wrong roads.” The current government is not listening to the people because it feels it has the power and people have to support what it is doing, he said.
“It’s a very, very dangerous path that they are on,” MPP Yakabuski said, adding, “because Ontario can’t afford it.
“The Federal government has got their fiscal house in order, even with the plunge in world oil prices, they still expect to balance their books, and that’s an important thing to happen.”
In Ontario, the books may not be balanced before 2018, and the MPP believes Ontario residents are going to see it get worse before it gets better.
“The challenges are there for Ontario and they’re right in front of us,” he said. “Unfortunately, from a political point of view, we can do something about it, we can keep the pressure on them, we can hold their feet to the fire, but we are never going to win a vote that they choose to win in this parliament. They will win every vote they choose to win,” he said.
The people, and the MPP, as well as the soon-to-be newly-elected leader, will have to make sure “the Ontario we love so dearly is still around for us to save in 2018,” he said. “The road that these clowns are on is not a good one. I don’t want to be too down because this is a wonderful event, but I think it’s important that people understand the gravity of the situation. One of the reporters asked me why Stephen Harper’s not meeting with Kathleen Wynne. Well, if somebody blamed you for everything she done wrong, would you be meeting with her?”
MPP Yakabuski ended with a simple message: Thank you to all of you who continue to make our jobs easier, who make us feel encouraged about the job we do for you, to make us get up and out of bed every morning and say I am working for the best people in the world, the people of Renfrew-Nipissng-Pembroke. You do that for me, you do it for Cheryl. Thank you.”
