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Trade pact essential in exportâ€"led recovery (Continued from page 1) Agreement (FTA) with the United States. "It sets the world on a course of a rulesâ€"based trading relationship," MacLaren told about 110 people at the event organized by the Oakville Chamber of Commerce. Under the agreements reached at the Uruguay Round, tarriffs in some areas will be reduced by an average of one third over the next five to 10 years. Tarriff and nonâ€"tarriff barriers on the other productsâ€"many of keen interest to Canadaâ€"will be reduced to zero, MacLaren said. They include pharmaceuticals and pulp and paper. By DIANE HART Special to the Beaver What a difference a year makes. A year ago, local Tories were gathâ€" ered at the annual general meeting of the Oakvilleâ€"Milton Federal Progressive Conservative Association in eager anticipation of the upcoming election, little knowâ€" ing the trouncing their party would take at the polls a few short months later. Thursday, as the 100 or so party faithful sat munching on peanuts and pretzels on paper plates, they were at pains to emphasize just how much had been learned from the disastrous election results. Both the Halton and Peel CAS‘s are asking the govâ€" ernment to take steps which include declaring that mandatory services (those required by law) have funding priority and exempt Children‘s Aid Societies from furâ€" ther cutbacks. They are also asking for the province to continue working jointly with the Ontario Association of Children‘s Aid Societies to address the "longâ€"standing systemic problems" with child welfare funding. "We‘ve obviously set the stage for major growth through improved market access for Canadian goods and services around the world," he said. Also significant will be the introâ€" duction of a common set of rules to govern trade in services and agriculâ€" ture. Local Tories say they must get back Reform defectors to w1 (Continued from page 1) community that we can keep the children safe." Under the provincial Expenditure Control Plan for 1993â€"94, the Ministry has threatened to cut 2% from the base budgets of all Children‘s Aid Societies. In Halton â€" where slightly more than $8.3 million was approved for 1993 â€" the CAS spent in excess of $9.2 million to cover its mandate. The base budget the Ministry is proposing for 1994 is only $8.2 million. CAS director says funding cuts to agency must end According to CAS communications coâ€"ordinator was a far cry from the more "This is the first time that the World Trade Organization will be in the area of agriculture. Canadian farmers will, without question, benâ€" efitâ€"particularly the grain farmers in the West." elaborate Tory gatherings of the past. Longâ€"time party members hudâ€" dled in small groups following the remarks of guest speaker Tory Senator Michael Meighen, disâ€" cussing policy matters and party directions in the riding associaâ€" tion‘s firstâ€"ever open forum. The Final Act will also put into place a more effective dispute setâ€" tlement mechanism, a clear definiâ€" tion of "subsidy" and in the future, a greater agreement on antiâ€"dumpâ€" ing rules, MacLaren said. But then, as speaker after speakâ€" er stressed, they want to project a different image of a party bent on renewal and reorganization. "I‘m as excited this year as I was last year," contended Kathy Hollinsworth, who chaired the open forum. It focused on issues such as party organization, aims and princiâ€" ples of the party, leadership proâ€" cess, candidate selection and policy "We‘ve brought down the trade barriersâ€"first in FTA and NAFTA. More recently, of course, in the Uruguay Round and we‘ve set the stage, we believe, for a major Canadian expansion in international trade. "But to do that, we‘ve got to do more at home to ensure that our companies are better equipped to enter the trade world." To help pave the way for increased trade, MacLaren said he has gone on trade missions to a number of countries. Immediately prior to the signing Teresa Pitman, the organization has been forced to cut its preventive programs and is concentrating all its limited resources on straight protection services. As other social service programs are slashed, more and more people turn to the CAS and the already overburâ€" dened caseloads of staff escalate. Currently, the Halton CAS has 36 social workers each handling approximately 60 cases. "Sometimes people say to me, why do we need a Children‘s Aid Society?" says intake worker Bernadette MacDonald. "They just don‘t realize how many families are struggling, how many children are suffering, and for many people the Children‘s Aid is all they have to turn to. We‘re the only ones who can protect some of these children." During 1993, the Halton CAS handled 516 abuse investigations and served 2,196 children. In any one month there were 195 children in the agency‘s care. in Marrakesh, MacLaren said he and other officials visited China, Korea and Japan. It‘s expected Canada will experience major growth in its trade with Asia in the near future, he said. development. Resolutions on these issues go forward for committee discussion. Markets are opening up as a result of tremendous economic growth in Asian countries and an eagerness to buy Canadian goods and services, he said. She said it was exciting starting from a "clean slate," rebuilding the party from the grass roots level. President Lionel Kilburn conâ€" firmed it was a first ever event and prompted by the surveys sent to members. "They wanted more input into the party," said Kilburn. In China, a number of contracts were signedâ€"in particular a $250â€" million Hydroâ€"electric contract by General Electric. He told them during the meeting that he really had not expected many to return the surveys but was surprised and reassured when 50 completed surveys were returned. Prior to the meeting, Kilburn said the federal election which wiped out all Tories in the House of The Hudson Bay company wants to open department stores in China. London Life and ManuLife also hope to get into the Chinese market to sell life insurance, he said. MacLaren said Canada is expanding its consulate in Shanghai and Canadian airlines will be reâ€" entering the Chinese market next week with the resumption of a direct flight from Vancouver. Korea is also of interest to Canadians, he said. Its economy is, Commons save two wasn‘t played out on the local level. "We lost a lot of votes to (the) Reform (party)." He said what was important was winning those peoâ€" ple back in the next election. The theme of renewal and reorâ€" ganization was the thrust of the speech by Senator Meighen, a partâ€" ner in the Toronto law firm Meighen and Demers and a former PC party president in the 70s Meighen was appointed to the Senate in 1990 by former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Noting the numbers of people gathered â€" about 100 â€" Meighen said there was tremendous interest both in leader Jean Charest and the party in its rebuilding stage. He added that the two MPs in the House of Commons in no way repâ€" resents the two million votes the PCs took in the last election. in some ways, "highly complemenâ€" tary" to Canada‘s and Korea is already Canada‘s sixth largest tradâ€" ing partner with the world, he said. MacLaren said his meetings with Koreans over the past few weeks suggest "they see Canada as a logiâ€" cal bridge for them into NAFTA." Koreans also seek technology agreements with Canadian compaâ€" nies, he said. "We are faced with a massive rebuilding task," he told members, but added it was not as daunting as trying to build your party into anyâ€" thing other than a regional party _ one of his many stabs at the Reform Party. "We are a national party. We had a candidate in every riding in the country in the last election and we‘ll have candidates in every ridâ€" ing in the next election," he preâ€" dicted. He said they have the opportuniâ€" ty to attract new blood and have a more open and receptive party that can build riding by riding, province Also of great importance to Canada is Japan, which has a comâ€" plex market fraught with barriers, MacLaren said. MacLaren said there are now seven Canadian consulates in Japan which can help put Canadian busiâ€" nesses in touch with small and mediumâ€"sized Japanese firms withâ€" out going through Japan‘s large trading houses. "That direct contact seems to me to offer enormous prospect for Canadian companies." MacLaren said the Canadian government is working on a number of initiatives to help Canadian busiâ€" ness. "We‘ve placed yet more emphaâ€" sis on our export opportunities around the world because I‘m conâ€" vinced that we‘re looking at an exportâ€"led economic recovery, one that would bring jobs to Canadians everywhere." MacLaren said small and mediâ€" umâ€"sized Canadian enterprises offer the greatest possibilities for major growth and "to that end, we will be working with the banks to ensure improved financing for the small and medium sized enterprises." mes put chas Rx x lense® Large gelecti0" of {rame* e Doctor's appo'mtment arranged We aC gept al) yisi0n care program frafalga" ; vilage 425 C ross AVC: 50% 0/ m pritA) eS 3\0‘3‘" e ce a by province. Meighen said it was important to start building on a provincial basis to recapture Ottawa and added that he believed provincial PC leader Mike Harris will be the next Ontario Premier. He called the Bloc Quebecois and its leader Lucien Bouchard â€" a former classmate of Meighen and former friend â€" incomprehenâ€" sible. "How they can stand there and accept salaries as MPs and obtain the benefits of Canadian citizenâ€" ship and then on the other hand seek to destroy it is beyond my comprehension and, increasingly, beyond many Canadians compreâ€" hension," said Meighen. He reserved his harshest words for the governing Liberal party, chiding them for adopting Toryâ€" like policies of NAFTA, GATT, unemployment cuts and the GST which he believed will be reintroâ€" duced and renamed, but remain as the same tax. Ducking other issues and their failure to address the deficit will all prove to be "conducive" to the PCs he predicted. He said they should be "downâ€" Oakville Beaver art director and PUD cartoonist Steve Nease signs copy of the latest book of his cartoon strips for Bruce Hood of Bruce Hood Travel in Bronte. ‘ The promotion, which asked people to bring in foodstuffs for the Oakville Fareshare Foodbank, was an overwhelming sucâ€" cess. Copies of the book are available at the Oakville Beaver offices, 467 Speers Rd. (Photo by Barrie Erskine) right ashamed" of their autoc style in the Pearson airport is "Their historical and de ingrained arrogance will trip up," he said. One member during the tion and answer period said i doorâ€"knocking and discussio believed there was a great between what the PC party people and what was actu delivered, particularly i promises of smaller govern less regulation and lower taxe And he commented that a nificant number of protest v went to Reform party due to gap that resulted in Canad facing more government, regulation and more taxes d the Mulroney era. "I think you are rig acknowledged Meighen. "~ perception was there. We, party allowed that to happen we paid dearly for it." He said that Charest is loo closely at the governmen Alberta Premier Ralph Klein, the senator claimed was d« exactly what the PCs promise do in the past. fÂ¥ L. /o OFF April 20