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Anniversary committee, Orono United Church their rnost important asset. 1 want to thank the miany, constituents who have called or written their input on the deliberations by Ontario, Hydro Nuclear Select Cormîttee. Nuclear safety and the cost of the NAOP (Nuclear Asset Optimnization Plan) are important to every Ontarian. ln Durham, we have two nuclear operations. Many of my constituents have important jobs in operations, engineering, safety and main- tenance. I arn sure that they insist on safety first. Ontario made the choice for nuclear in the 1970s and Darlington was commissioned in the 1990s. Ontario does flot have any supply of natural gas or oil. We may have some water- power that is underutilized but nowhere near the arnount needed. Ail sources of power have envîronmentaî risks. Yes. we do need a satisfacto- ry technological solution to nuclear waste. However, we must keep in mind that nuclear power accounts for almost 80% of our power. Any significant change in our Power source will take Urne. The Select Committee will Makie its' final report in December 1997. In Ontario, we aIl rely on a safe, reliable source of power. Mynm he b , nrgcfm t uniceFt LÈ (418) 487-4153 Rev. Mervrn Russell, mittee were instrumental in maxed in October during the Patricla Russell, Mary-Clare staging the numerous events Anniversary Weekend with a MacKinnon, D orothy throughout the past year that dinner on Saturday and a spe- Barnett, Dr. Daliah marked the l5Oth anniversary cial service on Sunday. Campbell, Marie Tamblyn of the Orono United Church. The year wiIl wrap up in and Bill Morrison make UP The special events started grand style with a "Sing the anniversary comnilttee. last February with a 2 day along Messiah" sýheduled for The members of this com- retreat. The celebrations chi- Saturday, Decemer 6. Stayî ng In Touch John O'Toole Dur hamn East MPP Support Is growing, as the general population becomes more lnformed on the provi- sions and axnendments to Bill 160. For instance, the OCS Trustees' Association lias clearly corne out in support of Bill 160. In a comprehen- sive review of Bil 160 and the exlisting Education Act, Patrick Daly, the President of OSTA, and Patrick V. Slack, Executive Director, reported as stating briefly: "School Boards retain through their policy making authority alI prevlous powers in determin- ing the goals and objectives of schools. They will also have just as much power as before Bill 160 in decldlng how financial resources can best be allocated to achieve these distinctive goals and objec- tives". The report further states, "Bill 160 does provide for fair and non -discrimina - tory funding. Principals and vice-principals will require current qualifications and become employees sirnilar to superintendents and other administrative staff employed by a school board". These and other endorse- ments are from, for instance, the Blue Ribbon Campaign started by a parent, Ms. Janet Burghart of Mississauga and students at Silverthorn Collegiate in Etobicoke. lThe students reported, in the Novemiber l9th edition oA Etobicoke Life, -People were being iinuenced byteces We feit that we werebig br aînwashed by unions lead- ers'. At your constltuency office, we are hearlng from parents who are upset by their cl- dren bel-ngasked to carry issue documents home from their school. Parents have said to me, "We feel caught in the middle, we are reluctant to cail the school and com- plain for fear our child will be centred out by not being mncluded in the next hand out to be dellvered home. Our chidren do not understand what this issue is ahl about, yet they are bemng recruited right in our schools by the people we entrusted to edu- cate them. Ail this ribbon stuif and propagandla must stop". 1 have been invited and attended a number of ses- sions ith my constituents on Bill 160. 1 have macle it per- fectly clear that 1 arn offended by any ads that criticize our teachers. I clearly believe thatL the vast mai ority of teachers are dedicated and hard work- ing. Furthermore, 1 believe that lie vast mnajority of teachers are dedicated and hard working. Furtherrnore, i believe that mnost people. inic1linig manIy teacher-1s, support reforrns3 to our edui cational systemi. For thi( record, 1 do not support rem]ovýing irnoney 1fro0n1 our system l1 ocaýlly. WeCrsnl spenil less than ie provin- cial average throughout mny rlding. If it can be demon- strated that there is waste in out-of-school administration, I believe we must commit these resources to the class- room. I arn available to attend any session with an individu- ai or groups to assist in explaining what Bill 160 is really aIl about. 1 believe that Bill 160 is about improving the quality and accountabili- ty of our publicly funded edu- cational system for aIl our children. This week at Queen's Park, I attended a session on the Health Services Restructuring Commission report for the 905 (CITA) area. I arn general- ly happy but arn investigat- ing -the need to address the population growth in our area. I arn satlsfied that there are reinvestments in opera- tional and capital of some $329 million dollars. We must have the dollars for home care as we move to delivering patients services dloser to home. Over the next few weeks, I will be meeting with the members of our local health care community to gather their concerns. The Ontario Federation of Agqriculture met with MPPs at Queen's Park this past week. 1 was pleased to meet and hear the concerns of this important sector of our econ- omy. Agriculture and the Agri-food sector contribute $2 1.8 billion to Our Ontario economly; they employ 647,000 people or 12.5%ý of the labouir force. Bill 146, Thec Farm Practices & Foodl Protect ioni Act 1997 will soon becomec law a-nd] this Act ensurres fairm practices and enivironmenta,1!ýl issue-sare pro tectedi. 1 always rememiiber that land sltewardsipi is rnost importan-t to the farmier. The land is their invesi ment and BALLS RADIO & T.V. REPAIR REPAIRS TO MOST MAKES STEREOS, COLOUR AND B&W T.V.s AND V.C.R.s P.O. Box 27, (905) 983-5721 R.R. 2. Orono, Ont. SERVING DURH-AM REGION SNE14 FUNERAL SERVICES PRE-ARRANGED & PREPAID "Wliere Profesionat!Etiqueue is Importat Funeral Directors PaulR. Morris Robert E. Williams Gary M. Conway Doug R. Rutherford ANSWERING YOUR CALL 24 HOUAS 623-5480 4 Division St. Bowmanville