Editor:
Paul Keyes misinterpreted my remark about the competitive nature of striving for federal government investment in our riding (Coast Reporter, letters, March 22).
He rightly said it is a competitive assignment. He wrongly said it means only the ridings represented by government members get to share in the investment.
Generally speaking, under a government that is accountable and that follows the rule of law, there are not so much "government funds" available for projects but there are "government programs." The programs set out criteria for selection of which projects will prevail; they are generally over-subscribed, so government decision-makers are forced to choose among the various applications.
My point is that our riding has been well served by the cooperative manner in which representatives of all levels of government have typically communicated among one another, and cooperated with one another, at least during my term of office.
Especially when the Conservative government was emphasizing government spending to stimulate the economy under the Economic Action Plan, our riding succeeded in obtaining funding in many cases due to the seamless way in which my staff and I worked with the staff, mayors, councillors, and regional district directors and staff to identify needs, set priorities, identify government programs, file applications, and follow up with the decision-makers.
Some ridings succeeded while others failed. Like it or not, it was a competitive business.
John Weston, Member of Parliament
West Vancouver - Sunshine Coast - Sea to Sky Country
