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4- The Oakville Beaver, Friday September 14, 2007 www.oakvillebeaver.com More answers sought at CAW debate By Krissie Rutherford OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF F '07 all Best of What's New here now! NEW to Oakville Place this Fall: Aéropostale Melanie Lyne RK and Raffi Boutique om c ce. pla ille akv w.o ww QEW & Trafalgar Rd. Two hours wasn't nearly enough time to cover the questions residents wanted answered at Wednesday night's all-candidates meeting. A line-up of people were left standing by the microphone, many with written questions in hand, at the end of the debate that drew more than 70 local residents to Galaxy 707. Organized by Local 707 of the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW), the first half of the meeting was devoted to labour issues and questions about each party's economic and social policies. Once the floor opened to questions from the audience, it became clear there's a lot on the minds of local residents heading into the Oct. 10 provincial election. Global warming, child poverty, healthcare, joint private and public hospitals, minimum wage and guns were just some of the issues raised for NDP candidate Tony Crawford, the Progressive Conservative's Rick Byers and Kevin Flynn, the Liberal MPP who is seeking reelection. Oakville's Green Party candidate Marion Schaffer, who is running after former candidate Andrew Chlobowski withdrew based on personal reasons, was not able to attend the meeting. One of the most popular questions Wednesday came from a young voter sporting a Byers button. "Obviously trustworthiness is going to be a big issue," he said, drawing a laugh from the crowd. "How can we be sure that you and your party will do what you say you'll do?" Clad in a bright orange tie, Crawford, an author who works in the finance industry, said "fairness and social responsibility" are among his and the NDP's top issues. "I have experienced great misgivings with the Conservatives and with the Liberals, that have done nothing in these matters," he said. "I will run on a matter of trust." Flynn brought up the Conservative record, citing former premier Ernie Eves, who took office in 2002 and claimed the budget was balanced, when in fact the province was facing a deficit of several billion dollars. When Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory was asked whether Eves should have told the truth about the budget, Flynn said, "His answer was probably." "What kind of answer is probably?" he asked. Byers, who holds an MBA from the University of Ottawa and is now on leave from a job in finance, said trustworthiness See Candidates page 5