Join us as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms the Honorable Bob Rae is coming to Barrie and would like to meet with you.  Please join your BFLA, as we welcome the National Federal Interim Leader.

Admission will be free (RSVP here) and all Barrie residents are invited – So bring your friends, family, and colleagues.
Lunch will be available for a small cost, and Donations are always welcome.
Mark your Calendar! See you there.

Tories’ priorities clearly skewed

April 5, 2012

Are you prepared to give up $13,000 during your golden years?

Barrie MP Patrick Brown and Prime Minister Stephen Harper think you are.

That’s what the average Canadian will have to give up thanks to the federal budget introduced by the Conservative Party last week.

The budget cuts retirement benefits by raising the age of eligibility for Old Age Security and the Guaranteed Income Supplement from 65 to 67 years, forcing Canadians to postpone their retirement for two years.

For low-income seniors it’s even worse.

They stand to lose up to $30,000 which could hike seniors’ poverty by up to a third.

It’s a massive hit to the least-well off. It’s mean-spirited and it’s wrong.

The Conservatives offered zero financial analysis to justify the cut because there is none. The OECD, the Parliamentary Budget Officer and other leading experts have all confirmed that Canada does not face a pension crisis.

The Conservatives are also using the budget making deep ideological cuts. They are cutting $7.5 million from the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, $6.7 million from the Auditor General of Canada and $320 million from international development aid.

How skewed are these priorities?

Take a look at what the government is not cutting: polls, advertising, bigger jails and stealth fighters.

Canadians should be asking Stephen Harper and Patrick Brown how they can justify such a small-minded Canada.

Bob Rae

Interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada

What will budget bring to Barrie?

April 5, 2012

(Re: ‘Budget really delivers: Brown’ in the March 30 edition of the Examiner)

I would like to ask MP Patrick Brown what Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s budget actually offers the unemployed in Barrie, notably the youth in this city.

It seems the Conservative government has a very simple plan for our young people: send them to work in the oil sands, thousands of kilometres away from their homes.

What I also gathered from this federal budget is that while claiming to invest in cleaning up Lake Simcoe, the Conservative government has used the budget bill to limit environmental assessments, and allow the highly-subsidized oil industry to continue polluting lakes and rivers in northern Alberta.

In the meantime, gas prices continue to spiral up and more people are competing for fewer jobs.

The only thing this budget has delivered is another slap in the face of citizens who had better shut up and take it, as far as their federal government cares for them.

I certainly hope Mr. Brown will not leave us with another list of expenses totalling half a million dollars this year for supposedly looking after the interests of Ontario and Barrie citizens.

Mark Jessop,  Barrie

The BYL have also teamed up with the Salvation Army Bayside Mission to serve monthly dinners to the needy and two local papers, the Barrie Advance and the Barrie Examiner have taken notice.

Furthermore, the association is currently engaged in a care-package drive for the David Busby Centre. Moving forward, the association is in the initial planning stages of working with Youth Haven Barrie and The Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Canada.

It is an exciting time to be a Young Liberal in Barrie. The BYL are serious about giving back to the community while advancing youth issues within the Liberal Party.

Please like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

We now have a newly expanded board of directors and the positions of President and Vice President of Fundraising were won by incumbents Mark Jessop and Tara Bailey, respectively.  Congratulations Mark and Tara!

Our Young Liberals made a strong showing at the meeting and their President, Bradley Stewart addressed everyone with an inspiring message of hope and renewal for youthful representation in our riding.  Thank you to Bradley and all the youth for coming together setting the foundation for an exciting future.

Barrie’s Federal Liberal Association is having our Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, November 29th at 7:00pm.

It is being held at the Barrie Event Centre at 81 Essa Road.

We are inviting you as we encourage all members of the Riding Association to attend the meeting to meet fellow Liberals and participate in the selection of the board and executive positions.

On behalf of Liberals across this riding, please help us keep the Liberal resilience alive and on track!  Come to the meeting on Tuesday and be sure to support Mark Jessop as President, ensuring that we maintain the leadership that has brought us to where we are today.