Lately, labour and trade unions have been portrayed in a negative light by conservative media and business interests. Doing so may serve the interests of those casting the stones. But the reality is that we owe unions our thanks for improving the economic and social well-being of working Canadians over […]
John Rafferty – From The House
Last week, Canadians were reminded of something that we already knew—our Senate is a useless and unnecessary expense to taxpayers and should be abolished. The irrelevancy and expense of operating Canada’s unelected and unaccountable Senate is something that New Democrats, and many people in Northwestern Ontario and Canada, have been […]
In what may serve as the early political shocker of 2013, Alison Redford’s Conservative government in Alberta announced last month that it would collect $6 billion less than expected this year from oil and gas royalties while running their fifth-consecutive yearly budget deficit in a row. How can this happen […]
For nearly a century veterans’ groups have been playing a historic role in the development of Canadian society. Unfortunately, in a long era of government expenditure reductions and shrinking membership Royal Canadian Legions are now muddling through difficult financial times. I think the time has come for us to give […]
Last week’s column reviewed many of the biggest federal political stories of 2012, so this week it’s time to look forward and see what may be in store for us in 2013. As 2012 came to a close, the “Idle No More” movement was ramping up and Attawapiskat Chief Theresa […]
As this is my first column of 2013, I would like to wish everyone a healthy and happy new year. Last year was a very eventful one in Canadian politics, so here’s a bit of recap before we take a look at the coming year in next week’s edition. At […]
In keeping with the giving spirit of this wonderful Christmas season, I’d like to shed light on an important development being felt throughout Canada. The use of food banks in Canada is rising dramatically to the point where widespread shortages are now occurring. It is a national problem, but one […]
In keeping with the giving spirit of this wonderful Christmas season, I’d like to shed light on an important development being felt throughout Canada. The use of food banks in Canada is rising dramatically to the point where widespread shortages are now occurring. It is a national problem, but one […]
This week, I spoke in the House of Commons to promote the proposed Thunder Bay multi-purpose events centre. The statement was the start of a sustained push I will be making to encourage the federal government to become a full partner with the city and the province for this important […]
The decision by Resolute Forest Products to idle the kraft mill and one of the paper machines at its Fort Frances operations is a serious blow to the affected workers and their families, as well as the economy of the town. My office is ready to assist those who are […]
This week there were some rather important developments for many constituents in our riding. The City of Thunder Bay has announced information sessions for flood disaster relief for affected citizens, and the Electoral Boundaries Commission has announced changes to our riding that could affect the services people receive in the […]
This week presents another opportunity to share some of the hard work of the New Democrat caucus research team, which always is busy discovering new and interesting things about our federal government and our party. The parliamentary session resumes in a couple of short weeks and we’ll kick things off […]
