Home | Contacts | Classifieds | Archives | Media Kit | Email Us |
Denis Joanette, who has been a member of the Town of Two Mountains municipal council for the past four years, was acclaimed the Liberal Party of Canada’s candidate for the riding of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles in the next federal election.
In an acceptance speech made during the riding association’s annual general meeting at a St. Eustache reception hall last Monday, Joanette pledged to make Rivière-des-Mille-Îles a Liberal riding once again under the leadership of Liberal chief Michael Ignatieff. The riding is currently represented by the Bloc Québécois.
Fox last Liberal
Francis Fox, the last Liberal to represent the riding during the early 1980s (known then as Blainville―Deux-Montagnes), spoke during the meeting of his displeasure with being reminded he was the last Grit MP. Joanette recently said he would not be running for re-election to Two Mountains council so that he’d have more time to run for MP.
“As you all know, we have an election coming soon, and we have to prepare ourselves to make sure that the electors in Rivière-des-Mille-Îles will be ready to win and give back this riding to you,” said Joanette. “Michael Ignatieff is a good leader and he will be our next prime minister, that’s for sure.”
Joanette told the audience of convinced Liberals that under the current Conservative minority government, Canada’s international credibility has gone down with regards to the environment, forests, and the latest sector, nuclear science. “We now have a chance of having a leader who is well-known and respected throughout the world,” he said. “This person is Michael Ignatieff. What more can we ask for? It is time for a change.”
Fox was defeated during the Conservative sweep that gave the Tories a majority government, as well as a large share of seats in this province. “Let me tell you, I don’t know if I have to convince our English-speaking friends, because basically they’ll either vote for us or for the Tories,” he said. “But it makes one heck of a difference to have Liberal Member of Parliament in Ottawa.”
He laced into the Conservative minority government of Stephen Harper, saying, “We can see what Mr. Harper is trying to do and we can only shrug our heads and say thank goodness he does not have a majority government, thank goodness he does not have a majority in the Senate, because the real face of Stephen Harper would come forward.”
Denis Coderre, the MP for the Montreal Island riding of Bourassa, also disparaged the Tories. “We all know that Stephen doesn’t represent us,” he said. He referred to the agreement Harper made with the opposition to provide updates during the current economic crisis.
“He is on probation and he will have to provide us with reports ― one in March, one in June and one in September,” Coderred said. “And it’s not for fun. It’s to make sure. We don’t want to have another constitutional problem. We want to provide solutions and make sure that at the municipal level there will be money for infrastructure. That’s what probation is all about.” Coderre, who is also renowned as a zealous defender of federalism, may have surprised some when he spoke at one point in an almost conciliatory tone about the Bloc Québécois. However, like the Liberals, they have a vested interest in working with other opposition parties to defeat the government.
BACK