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7 | The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,January 23,2020 theifp.ca THE WAY WE WERE This circa 1910 photo shows Hornby Presbyterian Church. The original frame church was built in 1835, and replaced by this brick structure in 1878. The church burnt down on January 14, 1976. The remains of the foundation can be seen in the Presbyterian Cemetery on the corner of Steeles and 8th Line (across from Toronto Premium Outlets). Courtesy Heritage Halton Hills and Esquesing Historical Society It's about trust. Our rela- tionship with our readers is built on transparency, hon- esty and integrity. As such, we have launched a trust initiative to tell you who we are and how and why we do what we do. This article is part of that project. Way back in 2018, it was announced that the federal government would come to the aid of Canada's ailing newspaper industry with around $600 million in funding. And while that was great news, it took the government until January 2020 to get all its ducks in a row, which means none of that money has reached newsrooms as of yet. However, the fact that it is finally coming is wel- come news for an industry that didn't get any healthi- er over 2019. While the 2018 pledge consisted of several mea- sures, including a tax re- bate on digital subscrip- tions and the ability for not-for-profit news entities to issue tax receipts to their donors, the cornerstone of the program was labour tax credit that rebated 25 per cent of the salary or wages for eligible news- room employees - a.k.a. journalists. And that's a good thing. Canadians need news they can trust. Once upon a time, revenues from adver- tising and subscription sales were more than enough to pay for a robust brand of journalism that served us well for decades. Then, while the financial underpinnings of the busi- ness began to change, the country's need for news did not. Yet, every time a jour- nalist lost his or her job it meant hundreds of stories would go untold. And that's a terrible thing. For many years the in- dustry resisted calling for direct federal assistance, instead focusing on trying to win back the ad revenue that governments at all lev- els and of all stripes have been diverting away from local newspapers toward multinational online con- glomerates. When that didn't happen, there came a point where in order to keep publishing local news, the industry needed to ask for help. And now that help has come at last. This funding will make it easier for newspapers across the country to hold on to our journalists. It will allow us to continue to shine a light on all aspects of our communities, from shady deals to sunny celebrations. It will ensure that those cit- ies and towns with papers won't become news deserts, devoid of reliable sources of local information. It will help keep readers informed and engaged in the social and political life of the plac- es we all call home. And that's the best thing of all. Gordon Cameron is group managing editor for Hamilton Community News. We welcome your questions and value your comments. Email our trust committee at trust@met- roland.com. AID FOR NEWS FINALLY HERE OPINION COLUMNIST GORDON CAMERON EXPLAINS HOW IT WILL HELP LOCAL JOURNALISM GORDON CAMERON Column My office is asking for interested youth in Wel- lington-Halton Hills to send us an email, letter, or a Facebook, Instagram or Twitter message express- ing if they support the idea of setting up a local youth council. If there is enough inter- est, we will set up a formal application process for those wishing to apply to be part of our council for the following school year. The council will be modelled after other local Member of Parliament (MP) youth councils, whereby youth between the ages of 15-24 will meet with me (their MP) to dis- cuss issues that are im- portant to them. Youth councils are non-partisan and typical- ly run for one school year (September to June), with new councils forming ev- ery year. Our youth coun- cil will likely meet once during each school se- mester. Please contact my of- fice so we can gauge if there is enough interest in the riding. Online Contact Infor- mation: Email: mi- chael.chong@parl.gc.ca Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter: @michael- chongmp Website: michael- chong.ca/contact/ Mailing Address (let- ters can be sent postage- free to the following ad- dress): Hon. Michael Chong House of Commons Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6 Michael Chong is the MP for Wellington-Halton Hills. WHO WANTS TO JOIN A YOUTH COUNCIL? OPINION SEND A MESSAGE IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, WRITES MICHAEL CHONG MICHAEL CHONG Column