With the summer coming to a close, vacations are over. Work schedules are back to normal. Students are heading back to school.
It's also a time when our provincial politicians should be heading back to Victoria to resume their duties in the legislature.But reports this week in the Vancouver media suggest that members will sit in session briefly if at all this fall.
According to government house leader Mike de Jong, there isn't a lot of work to do and really no reason to bring MLAs back to Victoria for a full session until next spring.
This means no question period, no debate. MLAs would stay closer to home in their own ridings or work on their chosen committees.
It costs roughly $30,000 a day to run the legislature and the Liberals claim there is no reason to sit and incur these costs if there isn't any business to do.
While I'm all for saving a few bucks and having our MLA working on issues that directly affect us here on the Sunshine Coast, the decision by the Liberals to potentially quash the fall session is not a wise choice.
By not having a regular session and no question period, the public loses out. There is no chance for either side to be held accountable for their actions. We elect politicians to stand up for us and address our concerns. If the legislature is silent, how can we make sure our voices are being heard?
Prior to the last election, the Liberals had all but two seats, giving them almost total domination in Victoria.
After the last election, the NDP made a huge resurgence around the province and won enough seats to legitimately become a worthy opponent to the Liberals.
We've seen lots of healthy debate and discussion in Victoria since then. We've seen a lot of issues dealt with and a much better political climate overall.
If the Liberals decided to go through with this plan, then to me it seems they just want to take over again. It seems they don't really care about any debate or what the opposition has to say.
That's really sad. The legislature should sit this fall. I hope the Liberals change their minds.
Remembering 9/11I was on vacation in New York last week.
It's the first time I've been back to the Big Apple since 2000 - one year prior to the attacks on the World Trade Centre.Last week we stayed in a hotel near Battery Park and the financial district. Every day on my way to catch a subway I walked past the site where the Twin Towers once stood proudly. Every time I walked by I got an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.
I took some time to visit the memorial site, looked at the pictures on display of that horrific day and had time for quite reflection. A major construction project is ongoing at the site as a new Freedom Tower is being built as a memorial and tribute to those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001. The project should be complete by 2009.
The attacks in September of 2001 were a horrific day for all of us.
I know we don't live in New York and the attacks weren't on Canadian soil, but terrorism is a growing world-wide concern that affects all of us.
This Monday marks the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Take some time that day to reflect and remember.I know I will.
