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THE HERALD Wednesday March 21 1H1 Page Political Forum- Report Over the last few weeks this column has been heavy reading Sorry Its just that with the Gulf War and all the stuff about Quebec It was hard not to be a serious cookie So lets talk about some of the things that happen in the life of an MP The bfg news a couple of days ago was the resignation from the cabinet of Housing Minister Alan because he made a joke at the Ottawa airport about somebody having a gun in their Of a Garth ran Turner fir MP A HaltonPcel iM So he loses his job title car cabinet salary and prestige for something completely unrelated to how he was doing his work Its proof once again there are unbelievable expectations placed on somebody who gets elected I noticed how the papers played out the story the next day relating this incident to other scandals Some scandal one stupid and regrettable joke I spoke with that night and tried to help him through a tough time To his credit be did not sound bit ter or betrayed or broken Thats life he said so what are you go ing to do I mention this because just a few weeks ago Alan spent time with me in Georgetown meeting with area realtors then in Bolton where we met with municipal and regional officials along with housing groups By all accounts they were impressed So was I This now is a loss George Bush is president of the United States and surprising ly tall I had an opportunity to meet him last week quite by ac cident I was there in the hall in the Parliament Building when Bush and the prime minister were headed for talks in the PMb office Mulroney spotted me and introduced the president Bush was very pleasant and asked me about the lapel pin I was wearing the pin which iden- titles me as a Member of Parlia ment as he fished out his glasses to have a better look That pin features a maple leaf and replica of the mace which sits in the House of Commons I guess he liked it He may even have wanted me to give it to him But no darn way There was a report out a few days ago that Ottawa might con sider dumping billnguallsm or at least altering it somehow so government services are in two languages only when needed Makes sense to me Maybe we can keep this coun try together If we stop trying to convert everybody into what they dont want to be Let Quebec be Frenchspeaking and we stop lecturing them about their discriminatory sign law Let the rest of the country be English- speaking and the Quebec separatists stop this agitation for the destruction of Canada A lot of people tell me official billngualism does not work It costs million or so a year and ends up irritating people in two languages Theres also the feeling that it breeds discrimina tion in terms of who can work for the government But there are also those who say billnguallsm makes Canada special unique and tolerant Id appreciate your thoughts on this if you have time to drop me a line I suspect I know what Ill hear but- I want to confirm it before I give my two cents worth to the prime minister This week Im hosting a con ference in Ottawa on how we can better deal with the national debt the debt which makes our taxes about a third higher than they need to be just so we can pay the interest Some people angry about taxes are coming along with national business leaders Michael Wilson and other MPs a bunch of university students and a clutch of economists It has a great deal of work trying to put this together and last week I invited all MPs from all parties to come and take part It seems we have to find faster ways to cut government spen ding and to stop going into debt Im looking forward to seeing Wilson standing in front of the Debt Clock at this conference receiving cheques against the deficit from the Bolton Lions Club and the Hills and Burl ington Chambers of Commerce The first money into Canadas new bank account to pay down the deficit will come from our own communities Im proud of that thank you Queens Park Report Fair tax commission Several of you have expressed concerns to me about need for tax reform to ensure a fairer system of taxation in Ontario While our government does not have jurisdiction over federal tax system we do believe that measures can be taken within our own areas of responsibility and have therefore created a Pair Tax Commission for advice on these Issues What are the objectives of the Fair Tax Commission The Commission has essential ly two objectives to provide the government through the Treasurer with advice on how to design and implement a more equitable tax system In Ontario and 2 to engage a broad cross- section of people in the inquiry Noel Hatton North MPP The Commissions terms of reference will make it clear that increasing tax fairness is the guiding principle behind all recommendations However other tax principles such as effi ciency competitiveness simplicity and neutrality are to be considered as they relate to the overall objective of enhanc ing fairness What areas of taxation will the Commission be examining The Treasurer has asked the Commission to look at particular tax Issues low income relief wealth taxes land speculation taxes corporate taxes property taxes taxrelated incentives taxes and women the impact of the federal GST on Ontarios Retail Sales Tax and en vironmental incentives and taxes How is this tax commission dif ferent from other tax reform ex ercises The Fair Tax Commission will provide ongoing reports and ad vice to the Treasurer during its threeyear mandate along with a final report on the overall fairness of the provinces tax system and- suggested ways for improvement The Commission is more taskoriented than most inquiries in that the Treasurer has identified specific tax areas for which he wants advice before the end of the Commissions man date The Commission will in volve a wide array of interested groups and individuals in tax policy development What are the advantages of in volving the public in tax reform Engaging a broad crosssection of people in tax reform helps to increase the publics understan ding of the tax system how it works what are the perceived problems what contributes to in creased fairness and what are the tradeoffs involved in making a particular tax policy decision It also enables groups with divergent views to examine the options determine the tradeoffs inherent to these options and reach a compromise agreement which can fulfill some if not all of their needs How will the Commission be structured to ensure involvement of a wide array of groups and citizens The Commission will operate on two levels The first level con sists of ten commissioners who have three main tasks supervis ing the Commissions research and consultation efforts pro viding ongoing advice to the treasurer and through a final report assessing the overall fairness of Ontarios tax system and recommending ways to make it more equitable The second level is made up of working groups Each working group will examine a particular tax area for which the treasurer has requested more information The working group will be com prised of a diverse mix of people who represent Ontarians affected by the issue under investigation Their tasks will be to undertake research and consult with their constituencies and interested citizens During the Commis sions terms they will provide the commissioners the treasurer and the public with discussion papers on specific issues Can anyone participate in the Fair Tax Commission There are a variety of ways that the wider public can par ticipate in the Commission For example a person can submit comments and ideas to the ap propriate working group On topics not covered by a particular working group submissions can be sent to the commissioners via the secretariat Submissions will be accepted in any form paper audio tape video etc People can also attend any of the public forums of hearings which will be sponsored by the Commission And the public will be encouraged to comment on the reports of the working group discussion How does the public get involv ed Any person who wants to pro vide input to the Fair Tax Com mission may submit hisher ideas to the Commissions secretariat The secretariat will forward submissions to the ap propriate working groups for con sideration Effective March 15 the secretariat will be located at 1075 Bay Street Floor Toron to Ontario M5S telephone 325B222 MARCH IN AND SAVE THIS WEEKEND IN THE HERALD LADIES Fletchers Naturatlzer bring you THE ULTIMATE walking shoe To get the maximum potential out of walking you need shoes that fit feel good and are mode for walking or exercise Thats why Naturallier created the Performance Walker and shoes with their special fourpoint comfort system advanced sports cushioning overall light weight supple flexibility and breathable leather uppers Their special design supports and cushions your feet as you Get the most out of walking with AEROBICWALK Spitfire PERFORMANCE WALKER Charger FAMILY SHOES FLETCHERS 00T 8771664 MAIN ST DOWNTOWN 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