The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Pa ge 6 T hu rs da y, O ct ob er 2 9, 2 01 5 - T he IF P - H al to n H ill s - w w w .th ei fp .c a School daze Letters to the editor 905-873-0301 Publisher: Dana Robbins General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca, 905-234-1011) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca, 905-234-1012) Managing editor: Chris Vernon (cvernon@metroland.com, 905-234-1020) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca, 905-234-1019) Classifieds/Real Estate Kristie Pells (realestate@theifp.ca, 905-234-1016) Advertising Sales Jenny Hawkins (jhawkins@theifp.ca, 905-234-1014) Jennifer Spencer (jspencer@theifp.ca, 905-234-1013) Rachael Scutt (rscutt@theifp.ca, 905-234-1015) Kelli Kosonic (kkosonic@theifp.ca, 905-234-1018) Classified Call Centre 1-800-263-6480, Fax 1-866-299-1499 classifieds@metroland.com Accounting: 1-866-773-6575 Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca, 905-234-1021) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/photographer (emaher@theifp.ca, 905-234-1023) Kathryn Boyle: Staff writer/photographer (kboyle@theifp.ca, 905-234-1022) Composing Shelli Harrison (sharrison@theifp.ca 905-234-1017) Get the latest headlines delivered to your inbox by signing up for our twice weekly electronic newslet- ter. Go to www.theifp.ca and click on 'Newsletter sign-up' at the bottom of the homepage. It's been a tumultuous year for Education Minister Liz Sandals. Storm clouds began to pile up when some par- ents and students protested the introduction of a new sex-education curriculum for Ontario. Then we drew the short straw when the OSSTF (On- tario Secondary School Teachers Federation) called roaming strikes around Ontario. The Collective Bargain- ing Act restricts the OSSTF from bargaining separate deals at the local board level. Still, the union leadership decided to call strikes. 'Protecting the School Year Act' was passed to end the work stoppages, and both parties went back to hash out a deal. Apparently the process was arduous, and the negotiations "transformational." In the end, Education Minister Liz Sandals was thrilled with the results: collective deals were worked out with the OSSTF. Apparently she was so thrilled she decided to enrich the union's coffers by $1 million. Sandals says the money is to offset the cost of central collective bargaining. She also says these kinds of pay- outs have been done before. The union speaking for Ontario's public elementary school teachers insists it has been trying for more than a week to return to labour negotiations with the provin- cial government and the association representing school boards. But the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario doesn't want any cash from the province. The ETFO issued a public statement this week that said: "I want to emphasize that we have not accepted any funds from the government to cover any of ETFO's costs incurred in participating in the bargaining process." It's hard to understand the government's largess - all paid for by you the taxpayers. Why would extra time in negotiations cost everyone $1 million? If there are added costs to the new bargaining process, then let's trim it to make it more efficient, and less costly. Besides, we don't know where the funds to pay the union are coming from. Or, how the $1 million will im- pact on other programs. Reports say Sandals denied money being given for teacher pay hikes was taken from a fund that helps high school students experiencing dif- ficulty in learning. She didn't sound convincing. While one union says no to government money, an- other gladly accepts it, and leaves all of us wondering if something is seriously amiss with all this. No wonder Queen's Park is tumbling further into debt! OPINION The 756 Wild Goose Air Cadet Squadron of Georgetown would like to thank the community of George- town for our recent tagging (fund- raising) weekend, Oct. 15-18. Thanks go to both the businesses of Georgetown, that allowed us at their doors, and the community for their generous donations that will go directly to the local squadron to support the programs. The Royal Canadian Air Cadets are open to youth age 12-18, Mon- day nights 6:30-9 p.m. at the J.R. Barber Armouries, 91 Todd Rd., Georgetown. For more details on the cadets email info@756sqn.com. Lt. Shaun Laverty, Administration Officer 756 Wild Goose Squadron Royal Canadian Air Cadets Georgetown Air cadets thank community Re: The discussions over transportation chaos in Halton Hills. I have been reading a great deal in community newspapers about traffic congestion in our local Halton Hills area and the need for a plan to deal with in- creasing transportation chaos. Like many citizens who have lived in the Halton Hills area since the 1970s and '80s, I too have witnessed significant in- creased traffic volume and speed. As concerned citizens, we should be familiar with the Halton Hills Transpor- tation Master Plan Report that came out four years ago this November. I have read the 93-page document online cover to cover and encourage others to do so. The report suggests that the popula- tion of Halton Hills will almost double through to 2031, that private automo- biles will account for approximately 82 per cent of daily transit and that there are a number of proposed changes to area roadways and infrastructure through to 2031. The Independent & Free Press is published Thursday and is one of several Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Editorial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. The Independent & Free Press is a member of the Ontario Press Coun- cil, which is an independent ethical organization established to deal with editorial concerns. For additional information or to file a complaint, contact info@ontpress.com or call 416-340-1981. The Independent & Free Press Be part of the traffic solution Anyone who lives in this area should be aware of what is proposed and what's in the future as this issue affects the qual- ity of our lives in Halton Hills. The report is available online at: http://www.haltonhills.ca/initiatives/ pdf/masterplans/TransportationMP/ INF-2011-0057.pdf or by getting in touch with the Town of Halton Hills. Let's hear less about the problem and more about the solution. Start by know- ing what the Town of Halton Hills is thinking about and read this report. Mike Schultz, Acton Letters must include the author's name, address and daytime phone number. Anonymous let- ters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Publication is not guaranteed. Email: cgamble@theifp.ca Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 77, George- town, ON., L7G 4B1. Letters policy