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w is Total Market Coverage of Clarington from the Publishers of The Canadian Statesman • IK Canadian Tire presents Automotive Rustproofing from$ 49.99 Th» new Clean, Clear Odorless Solution for metal protection. 2, Bowmanville 623-5000 A James Publishing Community Newspaper Saturday, January 4, 1997 143rd Year Circulation: 20,550 MAJOR ATTRACTION-- Bowmanville Zoo elephants Angus and Sheeba reach out for apple treats offered by movie-goers at the Clarington Place Cinemas on December 28th. The elephants were just one of the big attractions at the free movie day held to mark UNICEF's 50th anniversary and the gala opening opening of the new 11-screen Cineplex Odeon theatre. MPP Says 1997 Is Year For "Action More Drivers Nabbed Police have been busy with their pre-Christmas road checks, stopping stopping more vehicles than last year and conducting more roadside breath tests. Thirteen drivers were charged by Durham Regional Police REDE spot checks between Dec. 16 - 24, and another five drunk drivers were nabbed by regular patrols over the same period. Police stopped a total of 8,580 vehicles during the fourth week of the Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere campaign in Clarington, Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax, Pickering and Brock. Of these, 108 people were given roadside breath tests. Fifteen were given 12-hour suspensions. Eleven were charged with driving over the legal limit, and two persons were charged for refusing to take the breath test. As of Dec. 22, 1996, a total of 27,215 vehicles were stopped by police. That's almost 3,500 more than last year at the same time. As of December 22, police had Jhaidv-nro Independent Flyers ®S> *A&P (Prices in effect from Sun., Jan. 5 to Sat., Jan. 11) W Canadian Tire v (Prices in effect from Sun., Jan. 5 to Sat., Jan. 11) 'Durham Farmer's Country Co-op ■January Specials- *!EH 'Graham's IGA (Prices in effect from Sun., Jan. 5 to Sat., Jan. 11) iome 'Home Hardware (Sale starts today - savings available to Jan. 11) 'M&M Meats (Prices in effect from Sun., Jan. 5 to Sat., Jan. 18) MCT/MBf MET MART . (Prices in effect from Sun., Jan. 5 to Sat., Jan. 18) Hi Port Darlington Marina ■Sk (Offer expires Feb. 28, 1997) © 'Radio Shack RadloStiadi. " W (Red Tag Sale ends Feb. 1, 1997) (Indicates partial distribution) For information about inserting flyers in 6$e Ctorfngtoiî/Cmirtte please contact our office at 623-3303. conducted 435 roadside tests since the RIDE program began at the end of November. (That's up about 25% over '95.) The spot checks resulted in 68 12-hour suspensions, suspensions, and a total of 32 people were charged with driving over the legal limit. Three were charged with refusing a breath test, and 30 impaired drivers were arrested by regular patrols. Since November 29, a total of 65 people have had their driver's licences suspended by the Ministry of Transport for 90 days. The final statistics for 1996 won't be released until January 6th. by Lorraine Manfredo .Staff Reporter Durham East MPP John O'Toole looks back at 1996 as "The Year of Study." But 1997 will be "A Year of Action" for the Tory government, he predicts. There is no shortage of reports and Royal Commissions to act on. Among them are the Golden Report on the GTA; David Crombie's Who Does What Panel; Durham Regional Health Council's Acute Care Study and the Sweeney Report on Education. Changes lie ahead in the structure structure of municipal government, education, and health care. Ontario's $17.7 billion health care budget will be re-adjusted, he promised, adding that it will be targeted targeted to where the need is. "Health care dollars will be spent differently, with increased emphasis on preventive areas such as immunizations, cancer testing and breast screening and long-term home care." Advances in medical technology technology have led the trend toward shorter shorter hospital stays and more outpatient outpatient servicing, which allows money to come out of hospitals' global budgets, he says. Physician distribution across the province will continue to be an issue of concern in Durham. "In my riding there are fewer doctors per population base than in Toronto, London and Ottawa, where there are too many physicians. physicians. " O'Toole says there will be different different funding for education announced in January. At present, education is supported supported by the province and local property taxes. Salvation Army Helps 175 Families by Lorraine Manfredo Staff Reporter Thanks to several charitable groups in Clarington, Christmas was not just another day for families down on their luck. This year, the Salvation Army provided hampers full of food and toys to 175 needy families. "That's down a bit from last year," said Isabelle Jones of the Family Services Department of the Salvation Army. Last year, she handled a list of 207 families. But, Mrs. Jones doesn't think the decrease signals an end to tough times. "The people I'm talking to still have financial problems," she says. "The lower numbers could just be because there were other places they could go." Social Services referred families to a number of local churches in Bowmanville and Newcastle this year which were running their own Christmas food hamper programs. "We had a few single people we told about the Christmas Day dinner put on by the people at Crossroads Christian Church," Mrs. Jones points out. The dinner took place in Newcastle. "We had a very good response from the public," she adds. Donations of food and toys' poured in from drives at schools, from the annual Durham Regional Police Food Drive, and businesses. Most Salvation Army food hampers were picked up on Monday, Dec. 23, but about 36 were delivered on Tuesday morning. Continued on page 3 "Education should be a provincial provincial standard, but there is a great variation in funding between municipalities." The government also intends to move ahead with plans to cut the number of school boards, reducing the current 165 to about 60. The boards would likely concentrate more exclusively on educational issues rather than capital planning. School/Parent Committees will provide important input, adds O'Toole. Driving all these changes is a commitment to election promises. The Tory pledge was "more effective, accountable government, high-quality, affordable education and no cuts to health care," the MPP notes. "We were elected to deal with the deficit. "It was $11.2 billion when we took office. We were spending a billion dollars more each month than we were taking in." The Conservatives are aiming to pull that figure down to $6.6 billion billion by the 97-98 fiscal year, and down to $4.8 billion by 98-99. The Conservatives under Premier Harris are still committed to a whole different strategy of job creation, O'Toole says, looking to the private sector and entrepreneurs entrepreneurs rather than public sector jobs. O'Toole says the economic climate climate is already improved. He points to the unemployment rate which has dropped from 11% to 9.1%. He-adds: "1998 and 1999 will see a return to more predictable stability," he says. At ten pounds 15 ounces, little Alyssa Kathleen Erwin fills out her Santa suit like the old pro himself and looks like the perfect Christmas baby she is. Parents Wendy and Glenn Erwin, along with their three children, Ashley, 11, Aaron, 9, and Erika, 13 months, welcomed welcomed Alyssa into the world on Dec. 25th, 1996 at 7:23 p.m, The family lives in Aspen Springs, Bowmanville.. Z