Unpacking the People's Party of Canada and Resisting the Far Right

Amid controversy, Mohawk College is hosting People’s Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier and infamous alt-right personality Dave Rubin this Sunday.

In response in order to inform public debate, the OPSEU Local 240 Political Action Committee are hosting a panel presentation and facilitated discussion.

The panel will address the far-right agenda behind the People's Party of Canada (PPC) and its relation to islamophobia, climate change denial and corporate interests. The panel will also address the need to confront and resist the rise of the far right, both in Hamilton and across Canada.

The OPSEU event runs

Sunday, September 29th, 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Mohawk College Fennell Campus, room C 233

Speakers will include:

Kevin MacKay

**Kevin MacKay (Liberal Studies professor, Mohawk College)
Just What 'People' Does the People's Party of Canada Represent?
**Tina Fetner (Sociology professor, McMaster University)
**Arun Jacob (Liberal Studies professor, Mohawk College) Populism and the Far Right

Privatization and Long Term Care Concerns in Ontario

Recently I covered a community meeting in Port Rowan. The subject was hydro privatization and there was a good turnout for a nice summer evening.

You can find the story at https://www.norfolknews.ca/news-story/7388445-citizens-want-to-take-back-control-of-hydro/

Former New Democrat MPP Rosario Marchese was in excellent form in making the case to buy hydro back.  You can hear a portion of his remarks at https://soundcloud.com/user227575210/z0000032

 More Privatization

As the story mentions the meeting was sponsored by the We Own It campaign and  the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU).

After the meeting I had the opportunity to talk with Jeremy Thibodeau, 1st Vice-President Local 230: of OPSEU and asked him to elaborate on the situation In Grey County that he had referenced during his remarks.

Grey County was about to decide on selling off one of its Long Term Care Facilities to private interests.

Thibodeau and Marchese show what is happening to hydro prices.

Thibodeau told me that a vote was coming soon.  In fact, the vote had been scheduled for earlier in the spring and Councillors who were opposed walked out of the meeting to deny a quorum and buy time to develop other strategies to stop the sell off

Unfortunately,  the delay was only a temporary one. On June 29th the issue came to a vote.

This is complicated stuff and what follows is only a brief summary of the latest events.

Where is Long Term Care Headed in Grey County 

Grey County has three long term care facilities.  Grey Gables in Markdale, Lee Manor in Owen Sound and Rockwood Terrace in Durham.

Rockwood Terrace needs considerable work to bring it up to Ministry standards.

After a lengthy consultation process, staff came back with recommendations that were largely accepted by Council.  At that June 29th meeting, Council gave final approval to build a new 166 bed Long Term Care Facility in Durham to replace Rockwood Terrace.

Council also set the wheels in motion to sell Grey Gables to a private operator “based on an approved project plan for a new home, staff prepare a detailed project plan to support the sale of Grey Gables in Markdale as a retirement/assisted living facility and that this conversion happen in alignment with the completion of construction of the new long term care home.”

Additionally, staff are being asked to prepare Request for Proposals to obtain services of a management company which will input into how the new LTC Care Home will operate in Durham. This same company would administer the day to day operation of the current homes and the new facility.

You can read more details of the meeting at http://www.owensoundsuntimes.com/2017/06/29/grey-to-proceed-with-long-term-care-plan

OPSEU vows that the fight isn’t over. https://opseu.org/news/opseu-taking-fight-save-grey-gables-provincial-government

My sense is that this kind of debate must be ripping Grey County apart.  Sure, there are lots of complexities to the issue but Ontario’s cities, towns and villages will continue to feel these kind of pressures as senior levels of government carry on implementing their austerity agendas.