Olivia Chow, MP

Oshawa: Conservatives Afraid of Democracy

Conservative-Controlled Oshawa Port Authority Shuts Up Local Residents

September 26, 2012

OTTAWA – A waterfront that’s taken over by the Conservatives. A rubber-stamped ethanol plant that is an environmental disaster in the making. And a local community that’s forced to shut up. That is Oshawa today.

NDP Transport Critic Olivia Chow and Environment Critic Megan Leslie today spoke out against the ethanol plant and the shameful behaviour of the Oshawa Port Authority. Stacked with Conservative cronies, the Port Authority is squashing public dissent. More than 300 residents were not allowed to speak at a public meeting hosted by the board.

Why are the Conservatives afraid of the good people of Oshawa?

Transcript:

Ms. Olivia Chow (Trinity—Spadina, NDP): Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are afraid of democracy. They are afraid of Oshawa city council’s rejection of an environmentally risky ethanol plant, so they took over the waterfront and appointed their buddies to the port authority.

The Conservatives killed the environmental approval process and rubber-stamped the ethanol plant. When 300 people showed up to ask questions last night, the Conservative chair would not even let them speak.

Why will the Conservatives not listen to the people of Oshawa? What are they afraid of?

Mr. David Anderson (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources and for the Canadian Wheat Board, CPC):

Mr. Speaker, the NDP members are always negative. They are negative about trade. They are negative about investment. They are negative about energy. We are focused on jobs and prosperity across this country, and at every turn the NDP is trying to stop that.

We are proud of the $10 billion our government has invested in clean energy initiatives and a cleaner environment. That is three times as much as the previous government. We are proud of the significant investments we have made which are supporting renewable power, renewable energy sources across this country. We will work to continue to develop jobs and long-term prosperity for Canada.