News

#1 : Denise's climate change series
#2 : Libby Davies' housing bill
#3 : NDP Seniors' motion
#4 : Denise's commuter choices bill

Last year my New Democrat colleague Peter Julian scored a major victory by securing a judicial inquiry into collapsing sockeye salmon stocks in BC’s rivers – a huge first step toward saving this precious West Coast resource.

Ninety per cent of the sockeye expected to spawn on the Fraser River this year never arrived. Sixty per cent of the Skeena run vanished. Ten million missing fish evokes the devastating scale of the 1990s Atlantic cod collapse.

This ecological and economic nightmare could devastate many communities, First Nations, fishers and businesses.

By Denise Savoie
Victoria Times Colonist

Transit fare hikes are bad news for Victoria-area residents and our environment.

But I do not envy the Catch-22 position that Victoria transit commissioners are in: Hike fares or hike property tax and gas levies yet again.

Today's incredibly tight transit budgets in cities across Canada can be traced back to the massive cost download of the 1990s by the Chrétien-Martin Liberals that left a gross fiscal imbalance between municipalities and the federal government.

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate Victoria's 2009 nominees for the Governor General's Literary Awards: short story writer, Deborah Willis; children's author, Robin Stevenson; illustrator, Rachel Berman; and playwright, Joan MacLeod.

Victoria also has its own awards for adult and children's literature, won deservedly this year by Patrick Lane and Penny Draper.

Cloudy Shores

By Doreen Marion Gee
James Bay Beacon

On September 22, Denise Savoie held a public meeting about the proposed new Victoria International Marina. Representatives from all three levels of government attended to inform the public of their respective roles in the process of evaluating and deciding on the fate of Robert Evans' vision. The public then queried the panel on local concerns. It was a well attended and informative meeting. With new developments both during and after that public event, some see sunny skies but others predict stormy weather.

Toronto Star

Editorial

Baby steps on pension reform

It took a rally by distraught Nortel pensioners on Parliament Hill to propel the issue onto the political agenda. It took a set of concrete commitments from the federal New Democrats to shift the debate from vague assurances to tangible reforms. And it took a concerted push by the media, organized labour, seniors and all three opposition parties to convince the Conservative government that retirement security is no longer a sleeper issue.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Bill proposes tax-free benefits for transit users, cyclists and carpool users

OTTAWA – New Democrat Denise Savoie (Victoria) has introduced a bill that would allow Canadian employers to offer tax-free commuter benefits to people who choose public transit, bicycling and carpooling over driving to work.

“Government can make better choices easier for Canadians,” said Savoie. “The tax-breaks in my bill would apply to all workers at participating employers who choose more environmentally friendly options for travelling to and from work.”

Matthew Pearson, Times Colonist

Transport Minister John Baird announced yesterday the federal government will commit $21 million to replace the Johnson Street Bridge, leaving the City of Victoria on the hook for the remaining $42 million.

The funding -- the largest single federal contribution to a municipal project in the city's history -- paves the way for the Blue Bridge to be replaced by as early as November 2011.

CFAX

VICTORIA'S NEW DEMOCRAT MP DENISE SAVOIE SAYS SATURDAY'S 21 MILLION DOLLAR FEDERAL FUNDING ANNOUNCEMENT FOR A REPLACEMENT JOHNSON STREET BRIDGE IS A GREAT THING FOR HER RIDING.

SHE RESPONDED TO QUESTIONS SUNDAY MORNING ON CFAX REGARDING COMPLAINTS IN PARLAIMENT THAT CONSERVATIVE RIDINGS GET THE LION'S SHARE OF FEDERAL FUNDING.

SAVOIE STRUGGLED TO FIND CRITICISM FOR THE CONSERVATIVES, BUT SAYS HER PARTY DOES TAKE ISSUE WITH THE WAY MONEY WAS DISTRIBUTED ACROSS CANADA SAYING THE NDP WANTED MORE TRANSPARENT FUNDING CRITERIA.

The Honourable John Baird
Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
Tower C - 330 Sparks St.
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N5
October 23, 2009
Dear Minister,
Re: Proposed Victoria International Marina