Tilson voted to scrap Act

2012-06-21 / Our Readers Write

The following letter, addressed to Dufferin- Caledon MP David Tilson, was submitted to the Citizen for publication. I am writing this to you in follow up to a letter I recently wrote to NDACT. In that letter, I reaffirmed my opposition to the Melancthon Quarry, as well as a cautionary note that your professed support of their cause may not be sincere. We now have the evidence of where you stand on that issue. During the past several months, you have implied opposition to the planned Highland Companies quarry project. As a demonstration of that opposition, you proposed to the citizens groups fighting this megaquarry that requesting a federal environmental assessment would be beneficial to their cause. You developed and sponsored a petition which you posted on your website and for months solicited signatures. As recently as June 4, you rose in the House of Commons and presented a petition to Parliament requesting an environmental assessment under the provisions of the Environmental Assessment Act. And yet, a scant 10 days later, you voted to repeal the Environmental Assessment Act! You voted to repeal the self-same Act under which you had been gathering signatures all this time for your own petition! As a senior member of the Conservative caucus, you would have known all along about the governments plans to repeal this legislation. You certainly knew about this legislation being repealed, and how you were going to vote June 4, when you presented that petition to the House. By then, Bill C-38, wherein the repeal is contained, had already been tabled and was under debate.

I believe you suddenly recognized that after the upcoming vote on Bill C38 the petition you sponsored would no longer have any force or effect, or meaning, and that you would be personally embarrassed by having to withdraw your sponsorship of that petition. Unfortunately, we are all embarrassed by your misrepresentation, and you actually should resign. Bill Prout, Former Liberal candidate, Dufferin-Caledon