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Pa ge 1 0 T hu rs da y, N ov em be r 5 , 2 01 5 - T he IF P - H al to n H ill s - w w w .th ei fp .c a 222 Mountainview Rd. N., Georgetown This 82 Suite Retirement Residence offers planned social activities, home-cooked meals served in our lovely dining room, housekeeping and laundry services, nursing staff on site providing healthcare and assistance to enable residents to enjoy a more carefree lifestyle on our 5.6 acre beautifully landscaped site! We offer a variety of private suites for couples and singles. Thank you Halton Hills! #1 Retirement Home Mountainview Terrace owned & operated by the Summer family 60 apartment style suites for cognitive self-sufficient seniors. Mountainview Residence For more information or to enjoy a personal tour - simply call 905-877-1800. www.mountainviewresidence.com ONE NIGHT ONLY ! JOHN ELLIOT TH 9 Church Street, Georgetown 905-877-3700 www.HaltonHills.ca/Theatre SAT. DEC. 5 8:00 P.M. $35 / $32 all inclusive JINGLE BELL ROCK T THEATRE etown JINGLE BELL ROCKJINGLE BELL ROCKJINGLE BELL ROCKJINGLE BELL ROCKJINGLE BELL ROCK ELVIS CHET ATKINS BuddY HOLLY by Jeff Giles EVERLY BROS.RICKY NELSON "Jingle Bell Rock" "Blue Christmas" NEWS Student progress reports may be done Elementary teachers reach deal with Province The House of Commons has seen some big changes and more are on the way. With the Liberal party taking a ma- jority at the Oct. 19 election, Conser- vatives shifted into the role of Oppo- sition. Now, interim leaders for each party are being discussed, and Halton Hills Member of Parliament (MP) Mi- chael Chong isn't interested in taking on that role. As for party leadership, Chong wouldn't disclose his decision. "We'll have to wait and see," he said. "Right now, I'm just focused on these Reform Act rules and making sure the 338 members of Parliament understand them and brace them in a way to strengthen our democracy." According to Chong, the new rules under the Act, which he spearheaded through Parliament last term in a Pri- vate Member's Bill, include MPs for each party voting on adopting four important aspects to running a stron- ger government. "It's a real op- portunity for us to rebalance power in Ottawa," Chong said. "It's no secret that in recent years, power has become unduly concen- trated in party lead- ers, particularly the Prime Minister's Office, and this is the first time in generations that MPs will have the op- portunity to rebalance that power and strengthen people's representation in the House of Commons." MPs would receive power in decid- ing the following: who gets to expel an MP from a party or caucus, who selects the caucus chair, the decision on the formal procedure for MPs to review and remove any party leader, including the Prime Minister, and the election of an interim leader should the party leader leave the position by removal, death or resignation. "These are significant powers and I hope the MPs from all party caucuses embrace these newly found powers as a way to strengthen the people in the House of Commons," Chong said. As for the next four years, now be- ing in the role of Opposition, Chong holds the values of Halton Hills resi- dents at heart and to work towards keeping the majority government transparent. "First and foremost, to represent the people of Halton Hills in the House of Commons," Chong explained. "Make sure that their views are being heard in the House of Commons and to make sure their interests are being represented. "My other goal is to serve as the Of- ficial Opposition in the House of Com- mons. Being an MP is not just about serving a government as a minister, but it also involves holding the govern- ment accountable." Chong embraces new power role given to MPs as new term begins By Kathryn Boyle kboyle@theifp.ca MP MICHAEL CHONG Ontario's public elementary teachers Monday agreed to a tentative contract at the central bargaining table with the provincial government and the public school boards' association. The Elementary Teachers' Fed- eration of Ontario (ETFO) has told its members to suspend work-to-rule ac- tion in light of a tentative agreement that has been reached with the Ontario Pub- lic School Boards' Association (OPSBA) and the government. ETFO members have been without a contract since Aug. 31, 2014. ETFO rep- resents 78,000 elementary public school teachers, occasional teachers and edu- cation professionals including about 2,900 in the Halton public board. "This round of bargaining has been exceptionally lengthy and difficult but in the end we achieved a tentative agreement that ETFO believes is fair and meets the needs of our members," ETFO President Sam Hammond said in a late afternoon press release. An ETFO all-member vote on the tentative agreement among teachers and occasional teachers will be con- ducted, with the results of that vote ex- pected in mid-November. Many public school boards in On- tario weren't producing student prog- ress report cards in November as part of job sanctions, but ETFO's Halton chapter president Marg Macfarlane said her members would be filling out marks and levels and submitting them to the board. However, the Halton District School Board issued a letter to parents Monday saying ETFO wasn't producing report cards. In light of the tentative deal with the province, Macfarlane said Monday, "We are waiting for direction from ETFO Pro- vincial about what is expected now," in terms of report cards. By Tim Whitnell Metroland Media Group