federal – mackaycartoons

Wednesday December 21, 2016

December 20, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday December 21, 2016

Ottawa, provinces fail to reach a deal on health spending

Ottawa and the provinces have failed to reach a deal on health-care funding, despite a $11.5-billion pledge by the federal government to boost targeted spending on home care and mental health.

The federal government has now taken that offer off the table, Finance Minister Bill Morneau said Monday, and the Canada Health Transfer (CHT) spending increase will revert to 3 per cent a year as of April 1, 2017.

Morneau had told the provinces he was willing to grow that key federal transfer by 3.5 per cent each year over the next five years — at a value of roughly $20 billion — but the provinces balked.

“We came to the provinces with a significant offer of funds … We’re disappointed we weren’t successful,” Morneau told reporters.

Jane Philpott, Canada’s health minister, said the federal government’s money could have made a real difference in the lives of many Canadians.

“I woke up this morning feeling very hopeful, thinking about half a million kids that are waiting for care for mental health services and hoping to be able to give them good news today,” she said.

“We’re disappointed that the provinces and territories did not feel like they could accept this offer and that they couldn’t find ways to use these resources immediately, to be able to get care out to Canadians.”

Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa said while the provinces rejected the federal funding plan, it was Morneau who was responsible for ending the meeting early.

“There was an urgency to close the meeting off. We’re here, we desire an agreement, we need to come to a conclusion. Why have anybody attend if there’s nothing to negotiate or discuss?” Sousa said, adding Ottawa wasn’t willing to listen to evidence that its proposed funding plan would imperil the country’s health-care system. (Source: CBC News)

Saturday April 18, 2015

April 17, 2015 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 18, 2015

City girds for superbox battle with Canada Post

The city is willing to take Canada Post to court over its plans to unilaterally install controversial super-mailboxes across the city.

Council enacted a new bylaw Wednesday that requires the Crown corporation to apply for a $200 permit for each of an estimated 4,000 community mailboxes meant to replace door-to-door mail delivery in Hamilton.

That means city bylaw officers can now lay provincial offences charges if Canada Post ignores the new rules and begins installing the unpopular “super-mailboxes” this week on the Mountain.

The agency argued Wednesday it isn’t bound by the bylaw.

The city should charge the Crown corporation anyway in the case of a violation “and let the courts decide who is right and who is wrong,” said Coun. Terry Whitehead.

Whitehead put forward what he called an “unprecedented” municipal regulation motion.

“There ought to be some regulations that apply when Canada Post does this, because it sounds like they’re going to continue on (with mailbox installation) whether we like it or not,” said Mayor Fred Eisenberger. “I think they ought to be a little more understanding and work with the city … to access our right-of-ways and roadways.”

Canada Post has no plans to delay the first wave of installations on the Mountain, said spokesperson Jon Hamilton, who nonetheless wouldn’t speculate how the Crown corporation will react if it is charged under a municipal bylaw.

He reiterated that Canada Post believes it continues to have the “jurisdiction” and “authority” to install mailboxes in municipal road allowances. The agency is willing to “work collaboratively” on locating the boxes, he added, but that doesn’t include following the bylaw or applying for individual permits. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Thursday December 4, 2014

December 3, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday December 4, 2014

Which door will McHattie choose?

The federal New Democrats want Brian McHattie to run for them in the new Hamilton west-end riding, which covers McHattie’s long-standing municipal power base.

“I have made no decisions at this time as I continue to consider various options in my future plans,” the former mayoral contender said by email.

But Peter Hutton, president of the Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas NDP, says there is growing support for McHattie to take the plunge.

“There is a groundswell of people I know from within the riding and elsewhere encouraging him.”

If McHattie accedes, he won’t be the only member of the outgoing city council to look to Ottawa. Bob Bratina is the acclaimed Liberal candidate for Hamilton East-Stoney Creek.

McHattie came third in the mayor’s race behind Fred Eisenberger who will be sworn-in with the new council Wednesday and Councillor Brad Clark.

But for 11 years he was the popular left-leaning councillor for west Hamilton’s Ward 1, which forms a large part of the new federal riding known as HWAD.

Speaking of pamphlets

McHattie swept all but one poll in Ward 1 during the mayor’s race and polled strongly in Dundas. If he signs on with the NDP, that’s bound to make him a formidable front-runner with a built-in voter base and name recognition.

Hutton says he first approached McHattie shortly after the Oct. 28 municipal election.

“Feelers were put out by us because there was support for the idea coming from within his own mayoralty campaign team that he’d do it.”

He says McHattie wasn’t in a frame of mind of discuss the idea at the time, but the door was left open. “Some stuff has come back to my ears but it’s stuff that is in confidence.” (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Thursday August 7, 2014

August 7, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday August 7, 2014

Kathleen Wynne urges feds to stop neglecting infrastructure

Premier Kathleen Wynne says infrastructure in Canada is in dire straits.

“Public infrastructure‎ in Canada has been neglected by all levels of government for too long,” Wynne told a special interprovincial summit Wednesday.

“And I would argue that now — time is up,” she said, adding progress can only be made when the provinces and the federal governments work together.

‎Wynne noted that Ontario is asking Ottawa “to do its part” by increasing it’s annual investment in infrastructure to 2 per cent of GDP.

“This is not about asking the federal government for something that isn’t going to benefit them,” she said.

Wynne said for example the province is sending $130 billion over 10 years on infrastructure compared to the federal government spending $70 billion over the next decade on the whole country.

The Premier said investment in infrastructure started to drop off in the 1970s “when Canada pulled back from a period of postwar infrastructure investment.

“This mistake wasn’t fully apparent until the 1990s. That’s when the crack could no longer be hidden,” she told the gathering of premiers, provincial ministers and municipal and private sector representatives.

Wynne noted that according to a Statistics Canada report, 10 per cent of private sector productivity gains between 1962 and 2006 were due to investment in infrastructure.

She also cited another StatsCan report that concluded that every dollar invested in public infrastructure lowers business costs by 11 cents and reduces manufacturing costs by 27 cents on average. (Source: Toronto Star)