Premier not satisfied with MNR handling

Nov 07, 2007

A cursory look at the Oct. 10 provincial election could have given Premier Dalton McGuinty a pretty rosy outlook on how Ontarians view his governing over the past four years.

But a little deeper delving into the results demonstrates that all is not well for Liberals in Northern Ontario.

In Thunder Bay-Atikokan, Liberal MPP Bill Mauro squeaked to victory over his NDP opponent by a paltry 36 votes. Former Minister of Natural Resources David Ramsay had one of his closest calls in his 22 years of Queen’s Parking winning by only 634 votes.

But no result may be more troubling than the narrow victory of our own Monique Smith. When Smith’s margin of victory shrank from more than 3,000 in the 2003 election against incumbent Al McDonald to only 357 votes against Bill Vrebosch, it caught our eye. It must also have caught Premier McGuinty’s as well.

Despite huge progress on the four-laning of Hwy. 11, a new hospital under construction, relative peace on the education front and what seemed to be a competent campaign, it came down to the last ballot box for Smith to claim her ticket to Toronto.

Something must have been amiss with Smith in voter’s minds.

And while we won’t take anything away from Vrebosch and his campaign team, we believe that voters in this area sent a message that they want better support for the MNR.

For the past few years, news from ‘The Ministry,’ as the MNR is called in these parts, has been about cutbacks to fish stocking programs, offices closed to the public and unions holding bake sales to illustrate the lack of funding for core fish and wildlife programs.

It is unsettling to residents of an area that relies so heavily on angling and hunting for much needed tourism dollars.

Perhaps it can be assumed that Premier McGuinty has picked up on this disappointment and ire and has decided to do something about it. Not only did he turf Ramsay from the cabinet, but McGuinty appointed one of his stars as the replacement.

The new Minister of Natural Resources, Donna Cansfield, has a proven track record of success in her past portfolios of energy and transportation. This is evident right here in Almaguin as the hordes of bulldozers, excavators and dump trucks work at relative break neck speed to four-lane our main corridor – Hwy. 11.

But, it cannot be ignored that she comes from Toronto, a place whose residents are not associated with strong outdoors culture.

Her citified past alone is drawing detractors who wonder how she could possibly understand the importance of a fall day walking the bush chasing game.

We prefer to see this as an opportunity. Cansfield has been handed a chance to show that a person from Toronto is capable of understanding rural residents’ connection to their natural resources.

And, let’s not forget that the years of cutbacks came from Minister Ramsay – a supposed northern boy.

Minister Cansfield has pledged to be a strong advocate for the MNR at the cabinet table to secure funding for her ministry.

In this regard, at least, she can do no worse.