-Dear. Editor: :
On: March 6, norice of a
ublic meeting scheduled for
irch ° 19, icgarding a pre
“posed three:rink arena facility
was mailed to our home.
On March 10, we headed
fF. for’ our: favorite walk and
were alarnied to find access to
our trail completely cur off by
huge chain-link fence.
tigation found the tence
ut: Off access ‘to the district
id from two roads (a block
a Mount ‘Seymour Parkway
nda block on Berkley).
of Signs were
fence” saying

uprooted.’

1 fact “propos a ;

borhood. or affect it adverse-

ly2, “This, proposal. involves. .

the development cf a multi-
sheet arena complex with ...",
local ‘residents who may
be affected by a proposal are
informed so that their com-
ments may be considered ...”,
etc.), the Canlan Investment
Corp. has no right to be pro-
ceeding at'this time.
Questions regarding: envi
ronmental impact, traffic,
congestion, and use of district

lands are: running through

our minds. .

The thing that angers and
frustrates: the most is: the
apparent sleight-uf-hand .that
public input will have’ any

_ impact. It is already in_ full
. “swing. Surely the community,
~ working together can at least
delay the encroachment until ”
there has.-been an environ: ‘

mental impact study, and the
‘semblance. of public input,
‘consultation and consensus.
_Suzee Cameron and Gary
“Grant

“North Vancouver er

: Hyundai Parts.
: Huge Select on!

‘returns for

ted white, m.p.

advertoral, April 1/1998

BUDGET BITS

More than a month has passed since
the Federal Minister of Finance present-
ed his budget to Parliament — enough
time for financial analysts to study the
implications of the measures proposed,
check ail the addition, and look for hid-
den surprises. Canada’s Auditor
General is one of those analysts, and he
found that the Government has made “a
significant departure from objective
accounting standards”, causing him to
publicly criticize the Government for its
questionable book-keeping methods.

“Cooking the Books” is what Reform’s
Finance Critic, Monte Solberg called it dur-

ing Question Period, because the

Government has included the cost
ofits much promoted Canada
Millennium Scholarship Foundation
in. THIS year’s budget, even though

‘the money will not be spent until

the year 2000. Reform's Treasury Board
Critic, John Williams, also challenged the
Minister.to adinit that he was tudging the
books. “If Canadian taxpayers tried
to claim deductions in their tax
‘expenditures — they
haven't yet made,” said Wiliams,
“Revenue Canada would be hauling
them off to court.”

_ Reform is accusing the Liberals of try-
ing to hide a potential $2.5 billion surplus in
the 1998 budget, instead of returning the

.money to taxpayers in the form of tax relief

and debt repayments. The Government, it
seems, simply cannot resist the urge to
spend, and with a projected surplus burn-
ing a hole:in their pockets: they felt com-
pelled to assign the money to future pro-
gram spending rather than giving it back to

-the’ rightful. owners. — taxpayers. Then, -
unhappy that they had been caught with :

their hands in the cookie jar, the Deputy
Minister of: Finance and the Secretary of
the Treasury Board sent a letter.to the
Auditor General expressing their. “profound

astonishment that this issue has now been ~
reported in the press as a result of an inter--

view you (the Auditor Generai) gave. ”

_ tle closer to home —

MP OFFICE EXPENSES

The largest portion of the total $22 mil-
lion increase in the House of Commons
budget was a $15.4 million boost to the
funding for MP constituency services,
bringing the annual allocation up to $150
million - about 0.09% of total federal!
spending. This money. is used for MP
salaries and allowances, staff salaries and
benefits, telephone, rent, supplies, furni-
ture, and so on. The budget allocation for

_my North Vancouver office will rise by

about $6,000 per vear to roughly
$192,000, but this money dees not end up
in my pocket — it is there to pay for the ser-
vices provided to the roughly 125,000 peo-
ple who live in the Riding. Jn practical

terms though, since | have come in at least.

5% under budget every year since | was

elected, | am one MP who is unlikely to:

need the extra funding.
In thinking about the amount of money

spent on running Parliament and the MP:

constituency offices, .it may help to put
things into perspective if we compare the
annual cost with some other services a lit:
for example, the sub-
sidy on the BC. Transit system in Greater
Vancouver.: For ‘reference, ‘the’ total
cost of: all the MPs, their alaries

Greater Vancouver i is forecast for: 1997/98
to be more than S175 ‘million. “Addin: debt

.. Congratulations to'the Auditor General. -

d say, for doing his job as watchdog for the -

ublic purse, for refusing to accept the bla-
nt manipulation | of: ‘budget numbers, and

for making it clear that he intends to report
his concerns directly to Parliament in April’
‘if the Government does not back down.

HOUSE BUDGET BOOSTED |

On February 26th the Government : ut

tabled ‘its detailed. spending estimates for. ;
“the 1998/99. budget: Examination of those
‘estimates quickly turned up some interest-, -

ing ‘increases in .the spending. for

‘Parliament itself, the Senate, and the_

Prime. Minister's Office. .
For example, the Prime Minister’ Ss office’

gave itself an increase of $716,000, which |
prompted Reform's Treasury Board Critic ~

John Williams to ask “When ‘Canadians

_were given tax relief amounting to
‘just a case of beer @ year, why does

the Prime Minister need’ an extra

‘$700,000 to run his own office?” No
meaningful explanation for the increase .

was: forthcoming though,*,and. the only ©
: presently wes ‘S77, 700, 3

information’ available ‘stales that’ the
money ‘is .needed. to cover opera

‘tions and the Prime Minister's. vesi-, :
dence. Where is the media on this” issue =.

you ask? Good question!

. Got Kai fol to sell? :
- Now’s the time...

that the federal budget is fin

Virtually ‘ everyone | s hap
balanced

and -the’ $583 _ billion feder: iebt iS "no

longer increasing. : Virtually everyone ‘also.
fealizes’ that: this was, achieved viaenor-. |
mous tax hikes, and some good luck in the |
form. of: Jower interest rates, rather: than,
coming from any significant cuts to federal.

spending. The end result though, is that
the Government no longer has any excuse

: for delaying a program of tax relief and

debt reduction, and if the letters and calis

- to-my office are any indication, you .want
“me to keep up the pressure on the Fi inance

Minister. in this regard.
For. the record, the ‘average tamily

gies
ee Bs

aes — 7

All April long you can
get good and wordy,
but only in the
Classified Section of
the North Shore News.

i Logo design:
contest

Capilano College First

' Nations Student
Services is halding a
logo design contest to
use with
communications and
promotional materials.
The Squamish Nation
is donating $500 in

" prize money. L-:tailed
snbmission
requirements may be
obtained from Peggy:
Shannon ar 984-1762 |
or Darell Gaddie at °
986-1911, local 3067. -.

., The submission: - :
deadline is 12 noon on
Thursday, April i 16...

P-Explore

- Vancouver" S.
: geology

“Join Geography,

‘professor-Amie

» Thomlinson on field

trips that'will take y
‘v0.4 variety of.”
interesting afeas ::

a around the Lowe!

* Mainland: Discover the:
*. volcano on'Queen -
Elizabeth Park)".
. “hotspots of downtown
‘: Vancouver; and the.
~ Capilano Ri
: floodplain:
. Tuesday evening
“lectures ‘on April 14°
“and 2 Land two
Sanurday field trips an’

“April 18 and. 25. Cosi

taking a two-wee
Computer Basics

evening course. Call