onservatives will meet Winnipeg for their ational policy conven- ion — a crucial meet- g that has the poten- tial to reshape anadian politics. Admittedly,.the once great barty of John A. Macdonald, 'B. Bennett, John iefenbaker and (dare I men- ion him?) Brian Mulroney, as seen better days. In fact, never seen worse days. Of uirse; this sad state of affairs ads Tory optimists to Believe. they have nowhere to ‘o but up. ‘Recent public opinion alls have placed the ‘conservatives and the formers in a dead heat, ach with about 12 per cent Bf the electorate’s support. As ie Reform Party of Canada. Fontinies to slide lower in the bolls; could the Conservatives ¢ inching their way back to espectability?, Can the innipeg convention provide ‘ean Charest’s Tories with the efining moment that has so r eluded Preston Manning’s ‘OOps? ; T recently spoke with the o, North Shore Progressive ‘onservative standard-bearers ‘om. the last federal election 11993, both of whom are ning to attend the policy ‘onvention. Mary Collins, the rmer MP for Capilano- owe Sound, agrees that it il! be a very. important jecting. : “Politics are so volatile ght now,” she said. “And is convention holds the Dear Editor: 2 We ‘are replying to Noel ’Wright’s column of Sunday ‘Aug. (1) regarding the pro- ed Bentzen Tunnel. » We feel this idea makes the most sense of. any, The. tunnel would provide the badly needed extra lanes to.” minate | present. congestion and pollution from cars idling while waiting to access. the present Lions’ Gate Bridge as well as eliminate a lot of through traffic in Stanley Park. fe would also save the cutting F of 'a number of trees for extra We find. it to believe that this type of a deal ould bea problem since the engineering firm is certainly a well-known and trustworthy company and regardless it would be put out for bids. Hopefully this will come to pass before a major catastro- phe. occurs, forcing the gov- ‘ernment into a decision. . ‘Betty and Harvey Riedlinger ‘West Vancouver _ opinion possibility of raising the pro- tile of the party and raising the confidence of party activists.” Collins said she hopes that the Winnipeg gathering will produce a coherent policy framework to take forward into the next election, expect- ed in 1997. However, she also admitted chat “there aren’t significant differences among the major parties any- more, The convention there- fore must show that our party is capable of governing and that it has the values shared by most Canadians.” The former Tory MP and cabinet minister frankly pre- dicts that the very best the Progressive Conservatives can hope for in the upcoming federal election is Official Oppesition status. Also attending the conven- _tion will be Will McMartin, _who carried the Tory banner in North Vancouver in 1993. He’s journeying to Winnipeg _ with a great deal of hope and expectation. “The Conservatives have a chance to set a new course under Jean Charest,” said * McMartin. “Politics is no longer a battle between left and right, but between old and new. The Reformers have failed to fulfill the promise for change, which creates a real ay opportunity for us.” McMartin agreed that if this is a “politics as usual” coavention, then the Tories will have blown the opportu- nity to build something new and dynamic. Tasked him if it was a dis- appointment that no promi- nent Conservative premiers — Ralph Klein of Alberta and Mike Harris of Ontario — would not be attending the Winnipeg meeting. McMartin surprised me by saying that this would actually be benetfi- cial, both by showing that the national party is not a carbon copy of provincial organiza- tions, and also in presenting Jean Charest as something other than an extreme right- winger, MeMartin's prediction for the Conservative party in the coming election? “Twenty to 50 seats would be fantastic!” he said. And stirring from the ashes of the Brian Mulroney/Kim Campbell debacle, with only two lonely seats in the House of Commons today, it’s diffi- cult not to agree. Plt check back with both Mary Collins and Will McMartin following the Winnipeg meeting. For now, what's important to note is that the Tories haven’t given up. They’re serious about their attempt at a political comeback and confident in the leadership abilities of Jean Charest. If the policy confer- ence provides the spark they're looking for, the Progressive Conservatives could be well positioned to “exceed most expectations in the looming electoral contest. — The North Shore News Loaded buses ‘spell trouble Dear Editor: There is an overload of passengers flowing through the North Shore area’ utilizing the BC Transit system this year. This is partly due to the fact that B.C. has become a major tourist destination, and especial- ly now partly due to the immense influx of Asian immigrants arriving into our city, Last weekend's jaunt for me, direction Vancouver, was the catalyst that provoked me to write you new about this situation, Many times in the last fra months, buses have passed me and others by, in additie: te being refused entry by’ be ihe SeaBus. was overloaded. the SeaBus officials bees Consequently | have been invariably late for my destina- tion whether it is work or a social invitation, On behalf of many residents in North Vancouver, not only is this an annoyance, but there is a safety standard to uphold here as an overloaded bus is an accident waiting to happen. The bus driver's vision is hindered because he or she has difficulty seeing through his or her right window. If it was an overloaded car, the car would be ordered off thé road by the police So, why are our buses regarded differently? Unless of course BC Transit’s mandate is to turnva protic at the end ‘of the year. In my opinion, our current transit operation is not ade- quate and requires improvements to accommodate the new and permanent traffic flow throughout our city. Diane M. Csch North Vancouver : . believes strougly in freedom of speech and the right of all sides in a debate to be heard. The coltuanists published in the News present differing points of view, but those views are not necessarily those of the newspa- per itself. Friday, August 16, 1996 - North Shore News - 7 [The Sundowner| RESTAURANT fon spectacular Howe Sound" | SUNDAY BRUNCH from 1 lam-2pm SUNDECK from 1 1am-Sunset DAILY DINNER Daily from Spm FOR RESERVATIONS CALL 921-8161 5 Km North of Horseshoe Bay’ al Sunset Marina ro a ae Ae \ e », 10 11362 MARINE DRIVE 980.9115 ". 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