A columnist in the Globe and Mail asked a question of readers: “What would you be willing to sacrifice with the new Carney budget that was being voted on Monday?” It was a pertinent question because the budget proposes to create a major deficit by borrowing money while maintaining social programs for Canadians.
Eventually something must break. The expenditures for national defence are long overdue. The increase in salaries for our military personnel is needed. And by necessity, we again must reduce our federal civil service as Paul Martin did in the Chretien government. It will be done with early retirements and not filling vacancies as they occur. The government faces choices. They can increase the federal sales tax to 7 per cent as Brian Mulroney originally set it at. They can provide a greater means test to reduce the number of Canadians receiving Old Age Security. They can increase sin taxes. I suspect that pollsters are calling Canadians around the clock to find out which solution is least painful.
Thinking about Fort Frances and other communities in the district, I propose the same question. What would you be prepared to sacrifice to make your community safer and more prosperous? What is your vision for the future of Fort Frances and the district and how can councils across the district make those dreams a reality? With the coming year for elections, we should be asking every councillor today and those candidates seeking election in 2026 that very same question. Surely, a candidate must have some idea of what they want for their community?
We like to complain about the municipal taxes we pay. We must remember that volunteers raised money for the Ice for Kids Arena, the Fort Frances Public Library, Townshend Theatre, Riverside facilities in Fort Frances, Rainy River, and Emo. All of that volunteerism is the price we pay to make our communities better. Each of those activities had people of vision championing those causes.
But what sacrifices can we accept to make our communities even better? Would we be willing to pay more in taxes to redo our broken sidewalks to make them safer to walk and more inviting for healthy lifestyles? Would we be willing to pay to have a regular “Green Waste Pickup,” as many communities do, to remove yard waste?
Would we be willing to put more funds into a reserve fund to assist businesses to locate in Fort Frances and grow our commercial and industrial tax base?
I ask these questions because the future of the district depends on new ideas and new champions to improve the quality of life in our communities.
