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Flynn l not elected l d Speaker k of f the h House By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Oakville MPP Kevin Flynn will not serve as Speaker of the Ontario Legislature. Members of Provincial Parliament voted Brant MPP Dave Levac into the position when the provincial Legislature reconvened Monday at Queen's Park. In a statement issued a few hours after the vote, Flynn congratulated Levac on his victory and said the Speaker's chair was in good hands. "I am looking forward to supporting MPP Levac's efforts to ensure the Legislature is a place for respectable and meaningful debate and that Ontarians are proud of the work we do as their representatives," said Flynn. "I have worked with MPP Levac for eight years and I know Ontario will be served well by his leadership in the Speaker's chair." Described as the heart of the parliamentary system, the Speaker's job is to preside over proceedings in the Assembly, enforce and interpret the rules of the House, decide matters of order, deliver rulings and maintain order and decorum. Flynn, recently elected to his third term at Queen's Park, said he ran for the position of Speaker out of a desire to return order and decorum to the Legislature. Kevin Flynn "We are facing a minority government. I've seen minority governments that don't work and I have seen minority governments that do work, and it seems to me that the minority governments that did work were in situations where the parties were prepared to sit down and listen to each other. That traditionally has not been a hallmark of Queen's Park," said Flynn in a previous interview. "It's been a very adversarial atmosphere down there. Often, the conduct of the members gets to the point where it becomes very uncivil and disrespectful." Flynn said he was qualified to deal with this situation, citing his time on an all-party select committee on mental health and addiction, which he chaired through 18 months of emotionally-intense delegations from the public. "I was able to hold the committee together in a non-partisan way, deliver a report that didn't have a minority report with all members signing on, have it debated in the Legislature, get each of our caucuses to support it and get the government to apply some money to the solutions," said Flynn. Flynn faced off against Liberal MPPs Donna Cansfield, Levac and David Zimmer for the Speaker's position. The role of Speaker is seen as a prestigious one and comes with a salary of $152,914 a year, as well as a suite of offices and a private apartment at Queen's Park. Despite Levac emerging victorious, there is still no shortage of work for Flynn who, earlier this month, was once again selected to serve as Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. "I am also looking forward to working with the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities Glen Murray and working to move forward on a number of initiatives," said Flynn. "I would like to thank all those at Queen's Park and in my community who supported my bid. With your help, I brought forward a number of new ideas to maintain traditions, respect and dignity while building a more inclusive and accessible legislature." 3 · Wednesday, November 23, 2011 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com Inside d Opinion............................................6 Wheels...........................................20 Artscene.........................................24 Sports.............................................26 Classified........................................29 Full Delivery: Real Estate, Sport Chek, Rona, Terra Greenhouses, Oakville Trafalgar, JYSK, Samko/Miko Sales, Shopping News, Sears, National Sports, IKEA Partial Delivery: Maytag, Shoes'n more, Salvation Army, Dania Unique, Atlantic Windows, Home Depot, Staples, Walmart, XS Cargo, Bouclair, Sears For home delivery & customer service call (905) 845-9742 Mon., Tues. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Wed., Thu., and Fri. 9 a.m.-7 p.m. (open for calls only after 5 p.m.) Closed Sat. and Sun. 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