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© a OPINION “FUEL PRICES ARE MANY CANADIANS FEELING PRESSURE The IFP - Halton Hills | Thursday, October 27, Qo a wn = =] = Mm wn MICHAEL CHONG MICHAEL CHONG Column About one in 10 Canadi- dents in Halton Hills, rely on heating oil or propane to heat their homes. Many farmers in Onta- rio rely on propane to heat their livestock barn: dry grains to prevent vot Can: S, Normal- ly, it costs three or four times more to heat ee oil or propane than it d with natural gas or other alternatives. But the global energy crisis has increased the cost of these fuels even be- yond these high levels. Asa result, many rural re: dents s using: these fuels are facing ‘ing bills in ex- cess of | $4,000 tt this winter. For these rural i dents, there are no alterna- tives and there won't be for years to come. These resi- would natural gas or other alter- natives if they were viable. sures elsewhere. In Au- gust, year-over-year gro- cery prices rose by 10.8 per cent, the sharpest increase observed since 1981. Year- $ over-year inflation also 3 rose by seven per cent. OUT OF CONTROL No Canadian should go cold this winter because they can't afford to heat their home. The rising cost of living is really starting to bite. espite pleas from ru- ral residents for help, the home heating, a tax that will cost rural residents upwards of $500 this win- ter. Adding to the burden, the HST is * applied on the carbon tax For many rural hou: holds and farm families, the federal climate action icentive payment doesn't ote the cost of the carbon. The federal government should suspend the federal carbon tax for oil and pro- pane heat. No Canadian should go cold this winter because they can't afford to heat their home. It doesn't have to be this way. Canada is the only G7 country to have raised fuel taxes during this period of record-high global fuel prices. Many governments out- side Canada have heard the pleas for relief from re- ‘d high energy prices and reduced fuel taxes. The federal government should do the same. Michael Chong is the MP for Wellington-Halton Hills, and the shadow minister of foreign affairs Sori the official opposition. in. be reached chael chong.as@parl gc ca. TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT THEIFPCA SNAPSHOT Allan Welters photo Spectacular fall colours await visitors of the Hungry Hollow trails. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. INVESTING: A TIME TO BE BRAVE |= The stock market has sig] ‘ant declines. bonds, which are meant to be a safe haven, have done poorly too. Then there is that sa sa- cred asset Canadians so proud of: home owner- ship. J Rising home values during a prolonged period have convinced most peo- ple that this was the safest investment possible. Not so. Rising interest rates re- gage interest payments, and because many families borrow as much as they can to purchase a house, the reality of increased in- terest rates is something meen homeowners fear. assets includ- ing stocks bonds and real estate is fine when all goes well, seems no There have always been PETER WATSON Column turn to be brave. Peter Watson is regis- tered with Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI) to provide investment advice. Investment products are provided by ACPI. ACPI is member of the Invest- ment Industry Regulatory Organization of periods of extreme doom and d gloom. you base today on what happened during the last century, you may think ‘we will see more optimistic times in the future. Unfortunately for the world we live in, all that is happening now has, in some form, happened in the past. Financial planners will en- courage yout not to get too optimistic wl good; the aie now is not to eet too 0 pessimistic. urage you to eke 2 a long: -term perspec- tive. This might be your The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of ACPI. Onl ty inn investment-related ucts and services are offered through Watson Securities of ACPI. Watson provides wealth manage- ment services through Watson Investments. He can be reached at wat- This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division ofthe Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are heir concems. Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca , soca newsroom@theifp.ca IndependentAndFreePress. Publisher and ief Executive Officer Neil Oliver Vice President, Content, Community and Operations Dana Robbins Regional General Manager Jason Peho! Director of Content Lee Ann Water Deputy Director rot Content Catherine O'Hara pay Editor n Micel Director ‘f Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager ‘i sman Cindi Campbell and Graeme lacintosh Director Creative Services Paul Gostlin The Independent & Free Press 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON LTR 3N8 Phone: 905-873-031 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Fax: 905-873- 0308 Letters to the Allletters must ‘te ‘ewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification Published letters will appear in print and/or online at theifp.ca livery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT THEIFRCA call 905-234-1019. EO)