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THURSDAY, MAY 10, 2012 THE NEW TANNER 13 MPP Reports Our Our MPP Reports by Ted Arnott by Ted Arnott MPP Wellington - Halton MPP Wellington - Halton Hills Hills ANNIVERSARY ARBOUR: Members of the congregation of Eden Mills Presbyterian Church ­ including, from left: Laurel Tubman, the Reverend Linda Paquette, Margaret Blacklock, Eloise Gardiner, Maisie Lasby and John MacDonald ­ planted a tree on Sunday to kick off celebrations which led to the Church's 150th anniversary on May 26. ­ Ted Tyler photo Township Digest Horsemen plot strategy Wellington County Warden Chris White wants ammunition to battle provincial plans to cancel a racetrack/slots agreement and hopes to get "local input, and some case studies and stuff so we can fire that back to the government," at a meeting he called for May 23 at Oboyne. White said the government spin of a "rich people with horses versus health care," issue can't be backed up with numbers which show 21 Acton horse industry workers and 12 from the Rockwood area ­ most lower New look, new product, new entrance GRAND RE-OPENING CELEBRATION SATURDAY MAY 12, 10am - 5pm Door prizes w Gourmet food samples w live music NOW OPEN!! Up to 30% off storewide Mother's Day | Teachers | Weddings | 1st Communion Free gift wrapping! - Books, CD's, affirmation plaques - Harmony & balance items - Crystals and stones Meditation & Developing your Intuition classes GIFTS FOR ALL OCCASSIONS SOUL REFLECTIONS ROOM - Now Open www.countryreflections.ca 37 Mill St. E, Acton 519-853-1996 end stable workers with fewer prospects ­ will lose their jobs with the proposed changes. The OLG, the provincial organization that regulates slots and casinos, is dividing Ontario into 29 zones, and current slots facilities ­ like Grand River Raceway, built with borrowed money by the Grand River Agricultural Society ­ a move that puts the Elora facility in jeopardy, White said. It's become a rural versus urban issue, White said, adding the government has written off "angry rural" Ontario, and "it's almost crass political." The current slots/ track agreement at Elora generated $15-million for Centre Wellington since opening in 2003, and approximately $3-million of that went to Wellington County. Hillsburgh thriller Verbal duels will escalate into deadly games when the Century Church Theatre stages Murder by the Book , billed as a "light-hearted, fast-paced and inventive thriller, written by Duncan Greenwood and Robert King, directed by Neville Worsnop. Tickets must be prebooked for 8 p.m. performances on May 25, and June 1 and 2. There will be matinees on May 27 and June 3 at 2:30 p.m. Dinner will also be served at the May 25 opening. For details call 519-855-4586 or visit www.centurychurchtheatre.com In the lead up to the provincial budget motion vote, the McGuinty Liberals engaged in a misleading campaign to frighten communities which have been promised support for their hospital projects. In the Ridings of Cambridge and Burlington, the Ontario Liberal Party actually paid for robocalls to suggest that the MPPs who represent those communities would be voting against their communities' hospital projects if they voted against the budget motion. In truth, the budget motion was straightforward and simple, and it read as follows: "That this House approves in general the Budgetary Policy of the Government," making reference to the budget for the current fiscal year, April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013. For anyone to suggest that an MPP's vote on the Government's overall budgetary policy equates to a vote on any one individual program in the budget is a deliberate attempt to mislead. In the case of the Georgetown Hospital project, the Government has promised to support our project with a grant of up to $2.6-million. This promise was made on August 31, 2011, which was in the last fiscal year. As such, it would have been accounted for in the fiscal year which ended on March 31, 2012. It is also ironic, because on October 21, 2010, Liberal MPPs voted against my motion which specifically mentioned and sought support for the Georgetown Hospital project. In truth, it was the Liberal MPPs who voted against our local hospital projects. As I've said in the Ontario Legislature, I will continue to take whatever steps are necessary to hold the Government to the hospital promises made to our communities in the lead up to the October 6th election. ****** The McGuinty Liberals occasionally chastise the Official Opposition for being unwilling to cooperate with them. In our parliamentary system of government, the Opposition Parties have a responsibility to point out the flaws and drawbacks of the Government's policies and initiatives. However, I believe that we in the Opposition also have an obligation to bring forward our own ideas and suggestions, in the public interest. Accordingly on April 19, I proposed a Private Member 's Resolution calling upon the Provincial Government to begin paying down the accumulated provincial debt when the budget is finally balanced. I characterized my motion as a modest proposal based on a larger principle: we shouldn't spend what we don't have, and we need to live within our means. The main point was that we should not continue to rack up the debt and leave the bill for our children and grandchildren to pay. This year, the Government plans to spend $10.6-billion on interest on the provincial debt. This is the third largest expenditure in the provincial Budget, behind only health and education. Interest rates today are at near historic lows, and really have no where to go but up. The Auditor General reports that Ontario would have to pay an additional $500 million in interest for each 1 percent rise in interest rates. M y e ff o r t t o o ff e r the Government a constructive proposal was rebuffed: every Liberal MPP present voted against my motion, and it was defeated. ****** Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott welcomes your comments. He can be reached at 1-800-2652366. His website address is www.tedarnottmpp. com.