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6- Ororio We~kty Times, Weclne~day, May 15,1996 Hospital Receives $12,000 From Our PeopleFund Memorial Hospital received an unexpected gift from the folks at the Bank of Montreal last Friday. A cheque for $12,000.000 was presented to the Hospital Foundation to buy two much needed pieces of equipment - a mammography processor for the Diagnostic Imaging Department, and a Nitrox Unit for moms in the Qbstetrics Department. Mrs. Anna Strike from Memorial Foundation received the donation cheque from Laura Lee Sallows (left) and Joan Sheehan (right); also on left District Vice-President Douglas Kemp Welch and on right Manager John Jones and Community Manager Marie Cosentino. Also pictured are the Branch staff and Judith Ann Sparrow and Cathy Gushulak representing the hospital. Stayi ng In Touch John O'Toole, MPP Durham East Yes, we can look forward to the future with hope and confidence. On May 7th, Finance Minister Ernie Eves introduced the first budget in memory with "No tax increase." Furthermore, this is the first time we can hon- estly say you will get your tax back. We have finally stopped the spiral of "tax and spend". For the most part, our munic- ipal partners including school boards are attempting to do more with less. We will each share in the responsibility to make choices of where and how we spend our money. The job of eliminating our annual deficit which is $8.2 billior; for 1996-97 is far from over. My advice to help.you understand our plan, is to think about your own family budget. We are spending almost $1 billion each mo.nth, more than we earn as taxes. We must forget the old strat- egy of solving problems with the cheque book. This budget was not only about our tax reduction, our plan commits us to a bal- anced budget by the years 2000 & 2001. We are also committed to othe' priority spending such as: • Heath Care at $17.7 bil- lion (presently $17.4 billion) • 23 new Magnetic Resonance Imaging units (MRI's) for quality heath care • $170 million for seniors to improve home care • $180 million annually provided for charitable orga- nizations * Day Care funding at $600 million (the highest in Ontario's history) • $20 million for children with speech and language disorders • $5 million for Canadian Living Foundation (for chil- dren nutrition programs) • $10 million annually for expectant mothers with (low birth weight children) • A Co-operative education tax credit (up to $1,000.00 toward work expeience) • Technology in the class- room (grants doubled up to $40 million) • Ontario Students Opportunity Trust (the province will match all dona- tions) • Elimination of the Employer Health Tax (for the first $400,000 in payroll by 1996) • Land Transfer Tax (refund for first time new home buyers until March 31, 1997) • Small Business Investment Credit (encour- ages banks tI loan money to small business) • Labour Sponsored Investment Funds (introduc- tion of rules to assist entrepreneurs) • Agricult ure and food sec- tion stimulus of $15 million • Agriculture sector (rebate of Retail Sales Tax on upgrades for farm operations) * Safe Communities are a priority with a number of new initiatives • Modernization program for correctional facilities & courthouses • $2 million annually for community crime prevention organizations • Streamline Ontario Provincial Police to ensure front-line policing Your new government is committed to the promises it made during the election. Health care, education, day care, safe communities, smaller government, elimina- tion of the red tape and bar- riers to job creation are each addressed in this budget. I will be holding public meet- ings to answer questions and address your concerns: • Wednesday, May 15th at 7:30 p.m., Port Perry Latchum Centre • Wednesday, May 22nd at 7:30 p.m., Bowmanville Council Chambers. Note: any individual or group wishing to discuss the budget please call 697-1501. We are committed to working 'ogether. One rather innocent state- ment in the budget (page 11), announced a process to embark on a comprehensive consultation process to address local government and education finance. The Minister of Municipal Affairs & Housing, the Hon. AI Leach and the Minister of Education & Training, the Hon. John Snobelen will announce fur- ther details in coming weeks. This comment, is directed at the GTA (Golden Report) and t he Sweeney Report on school board amalgamation. Stay tuned on this issue and be prepared to participate. ge e Omario will be rstruturin grnnile spuaW( OnLrlowiUbe estuctrg could il leamn from their car- the way we are governed. ing and self sacrifice for thir Please read the Saturday, children and the May 11ith Toronto Star article, next week, keep m "Education funding facing touch. turf war crisis." This past weekend in Port Perry., I participated in the 20th Anniversary of "Town Hall 1873". The Federal Government's Historic Sites and Monument Board recog- nized this important land- mark as a nationally signifi- cant building site. I commend the organizers and the com- munity for maintaining their local history and the vitality of events held regularly at 'Town Hall 1873". This past week, was edu- cation week and I was the guest at several local schools. I was very impressed with the students and staff. There are great things happening in our schools. I know if we all work together, we will ensure that education in the classroom is not neglected through this restructuring process. I am writing this letter on Mother's Day 1996. I recog- nize the important contribu- tion my mother made in my life and I arn sad that she is not alive to share this experi- ence. Evert mother ander i GREEN LEAF RESTAURANT 28 Kng Street East, Newcastle, Ontaro 987m4363 Home of the Famous Mountainh Boy Chieken Wings Arjays GANARASKA LEATHERCRAFT AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR: Tandy Craft • The Leather Factory Bristol Leathers Phone ahead or by chance 8335 fwy. 35/115, Orono LOB 1MO (905) 983-9540 GOING ON A TRIP??? GETTING MARRIED??? Planning a Special Evening on the Town for Dinner, the Theatre or the Big Game??? HOURGLASS Limousine Service will get you there and back in safety, comfort and style. CALL TO RESERVE EARLY