Canada’s Economic Action Plan is committed to jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. While Canadians generally have been served by a well-meaning regulatory system, over the years job creators have been forced to navigate an ever increasing maze of rules, regulations and red tape that have been a silent job killer. Budget 2012 introduced a number of amendments to a variety of existing legislation to bring fairness and a level playing field to business, while at the same time ensuring the safety and security of all Canadians.
For example, amendments were introduced to the Fisheries Act that recognized that drainage ditches, man-made watering holes and irrigation channels should not be subject to the same rules as rivers, lakes and streams which support fish and local fisheries. Farmers should not be prosecuted with the threat of thousands of dollars in fines for draining a flooded field as is the case now under the old rules. Even something as simple as building a cottage dock has become a regulatory nightmare with no clear standards of what you can and can not do, just the threat of prosecution. The amendments in Budget Bill C-38 to the Fisheries Act and many other amendments are long overdue.
As a friendly reminder to hunters and farmers, while the Federal Government has scrapped the long-gun registry, you are still required to have a firearms licence. Licensing and registration under the Firearms Act can now be compared to a driver’s licence and the registration of a vehicle. A firearms licence shows that the licence holder has met certain public-safety criteria to use firearms just like your driver’s licence lets you drive a vehicle. This should not be confused by any efforts by the Provincial government to create a provincial long-gun registry.
As the Member of Parliament for a Riding that includes the Chalk River Laboratories of AECL, it is disappointing to read the fearmongering and the attacks on the Nuclear Industry by the Opposition based on ignorance. I am pleased to confirm that legislated timelines in our Government’s plan for Responsible Resource Development do not apply to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), nor will other measures change the mandate or role of the CNSC in the review of nuclear-related matters under its jurisdiction. Resource development projects are currently subjected to complex, lengthy and overlapping reviews. Our government believes that one project should be subject to one review, within a reasonable deadline.
As your Federal Member of Parliament, I am pleased to represent you on a variety of issues. Whether that issue is eliminating the long gun registry, promoting agriculture, international trade, AECL, the military or jobs in the working forest, I am here to serve you!
As always, if you have any concerns of a federal nature, or just want to share your views with me, please do not hesitate to contact my office.
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