Geoff in the News...
More delay for isotope restart
Ottawa Sun Jan. 15th
Medical experts, business and opposition politicians say they're dismayed to learn of another potential delay in the restart of the crippled Chalk River nuclear reactor.
Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. says repair work on the 52-year-old NRU reactor "is progressing at a slower pace than originally anticipated." The reactor was to return to service by the end of March, but AECL warned on its website that the timeline "could extend into April."
"We're getting into a series of repairs that are probably more challenging than we've encountered before," said company spokesman Dale Coffin, adding "we're still optimistic that end-of-March return-to-service date is going to hold." But "there's always the risk that it could extend." A slippage into April could leave a serious gap in Canada's medical isotope supply. "I think they're learning a lot. Unfortunately they're learning a lot on the backs of patients," said Dr. Christopher O'Brien, president of the Ontario Association of Nuclear Medicine. Doctors are concerned not simply because of the possible extension of down-time, but because the world's major alternative supplier, the Petten reactor in the Netherlands, will be offline Feb. 19 for months of maintenance.
DISRUPTED
In a letter to customers, Covidien, a major supplier of isotope generators, said its supply from Petten will be seriously disrupted in March. Liberal natural resources critic Geoff Regan accused the federal government of inaction. The NDP's Nathan Cullen agreed. "We're back into crisis mode again and people will not get the tests that they need and as a result will become sicker unnecessarily." Home reno tax credit safe
By GEOFF REGAN
Thu. Sepember 10, 2009 (Halifax Herald)
Life in the Regan household not all politics
Halifax News Net
By Yvette d’Entremont
The Weekly News November 19th
Long before Geoff and Kelly Regan got married in December 1993, the pair knew Geoff intended to pursue a political career.
In October 1993, Geoff was elected as the Member of Parliament for Halifax West. Although defeated in the 1997 election, he was re-elected in 2000 and has held the seat for the federal Liberals ever since.
It took another 16 years for Kelly to take the plunge into political life after a great deal of consideration and a bit of pushing from the local provincial Liberal riding association. The former journalist is passionate about women’s issues and is a founding member of the Nova Scotia chapter of Equal Voice. That multi-partisan group is dedicated to increasing the number of woman elected in Canada.
This past June, Kelly Regan became the newest provincial MLA for Bedford-Birch Cove. Her Bedford household then became the base for the region’s Liberal MLA and Liberal Member of Parliament.
One of the first things you notice about the pair is there’s a lot of good-natured teasing and laughter between them as they relax at home. Although life can be somewhat hectic, Kelly said juggling their schedules and responsibilities hasn’t been as difficult as people might think. The couple are used to chaotic schedules.
When they first got engaged, Kelly was a widow with two young children. In a relatively short span of time, Geoff experienced marriage, a new house, and being a father to Kelly’s two daughters whom he adopted as soon as he was able. In addition, he embarked on his first term as a Member of Parliament.
Kelly had the children and a busy career herself.
“We’re kind of used to not having a traditional relationship,” Kelly explained. “And although it’s a juggling act, it’s a doable juggling act.”
Geoff’s frequent stays in Ottawa means that the couple are used to not seeing each other most week nights, although they do speak on the phone and email each other daily. With their two oldest daughters both at university, their immediate, hands-on parenting responsibilities are now geared toward their 13-year-old son Harrison. When Geoff is in Ottawa and Kelly’s spending a late night at Province House, family and friends pitch in, ensuring Harrison’s looked after and gets to his extracurricular activities.
“I was worried about how he’d handle it, but his marks are great, probably better than before, and he’s doing really well,” Geoff said. Their son attends many events alongside his parents, and is also helping out around the house.
“Harrison made breakfast the other morning, which is a new skill for him, and Geoff is helping out with the laundry,” Kelly laughed. “It has been seamless. Everybody has to pitch in in different places to make it work.”
Although he believes there are bound to be issues that will crop up on which the federal and provincial Liberal parties will take a different view, Geoff said it hasn’t happened yet.
“In theory, someone could ask us about an issue and get different answers, but we haven’t had that problem,” Geoff said. “Most of the time we’re asked about different things, with me being with the Government of Canada and Kelly being on the provincial side.” Kelly added that the pair occasionally hear from the same constituents, particularly if an issue has provincial and federal components. Recently, the same family approached both politicians about their frustrations stemming from the long H1N1 vaccination line-ups. They had four children under the age of five and struggled waiting in the cold for two days before getting the shots.
Kelly said now that she is experiencing political life personally, she has a greater appreciation for what Geoff does. “I think I had a pretty good idea what his job was, but until you actually do it, you don’t really know,” she said. The large size of his federal riding means Geoff’s territory cuts into communities served by a handful of provincial MLAs. Geoff joked that while he gets along well with all of the MLAs, Kelly just might be the MLA who makes him work the hardest. “It isn’t the case with all the MLAs that I hear from them as soon as I get home with a ‘Honey-Do’ list, so that’s definitely a bit different,” Geoff laughed. “I certainly don’t get a ‘Honey-Do’ list from Bill Estabrooks.”
Ottawa’s inaction could hurt us here
ROGER TAYLOR (Halifax Herald, September 19, 2009)
NOVA SCOTIA has been dragged into the debate over the sale of Nortel Networks Corp.’s patented technology to a foreign company.
Ottawa announced Friday it would not intervene in the US$1.13-billion sale of key wireless assets to Telefon AB LM Ericsson of Sweden, citing the bid’s failure to pose concerns about national security and therefore not qualifying for an Investment Canada review.
Industry Canada Minister Tony Clement argued, however, that government intervention in the sale would open the door to Canadian companies being subject to protectionism from other countries.
BlackBerry maker Research in Motion of Waterloo, Ont., had been the most vocal of those who called on the government to review the sale because Nortel’s long-term evolution wireless technology was too valuable for Canada to give up.
Clement explained that the Conservative government determined that Nortel’s technology was not critical to national security, which would have been one of the criteria needed to justify its intervention.
Ottawa-based Nortel is bankrupt, its shares have been delisted from major stock exchanges and there is little left but the haggling over remains.
Halifax West MP Geoff Regan quizzed Clement in the House of Commons on Thursday about the decision not to review the sale. He told me in an interview Friday that the smartphone segment in which RIM competes is cutthroat and gaining control of Nortel’s long-term evolution technology is crucial in allowing RIM to help determine the future direction of wireless network architecture.
"Considering the number of taxpayers’ dollars that went into developing Nortel over the years, the government of Canada ought to have considered Nortel an important Canadian asset. And to basically not intervene and to simply let it go without even a review . . . when it would have been a very valuable asset to a company like RIM, going forward, is foolhardy."
RIM employs more than 600 people at a high-end customer support centre in Bedford, with the potential for 600 more in the coming years.
"If you have a problem with your BlackBerry, you call (Bell Aliant) or you call Rogers and if they can’t solve the problem, they call this place. So it’s a high-end support centre and it would deal with all kinds of problems."
On the phone from Ottawa, Regan told me that it is extremely important to the people who are working at the RIM operation in Bedford, and for people who will be working there in coming years, that RIM remain strong and competitive. Having control of the Nortel technology would help do that.
"I want to make sure that a great Canadian champion like RIM maintains the advantage it has had and that this technology . . . is an important part of keeping that kind of advantage."
Regan says he met with RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie in Waterloo a couple of weeks ago and, in addition to the Nortel patent issue, the future of the Bedford operation came up in conversation. The company is continuing to hire for its Bedford centre, says Regan, but is sometimes having difficulty finding the right people for the job.
In his testimony before a House of Commons committee last month, Mike Lazaridis, the RIM co-CEO who directs the company’s research, said that Nortel’s most valuable property is patents related to the next generation of wireless networks.
It is not widely known, he said, but in addition to building smartphones, RIM owns and operates one of the world’s largest Internet protocol networks connecting to more than 400 networks globally. Nortel’s long-term evolution technology is by far the most widely supported architecture for the next generation of wireless networks and, Lazaridis argued, it will provide faster data speeds and better customer experiences than current networks.
Aside from enabling the delivery of more and better services over wireless networks, he said it will become a commercial opportunity for the wireless industry, including infrastructure suppliers, handset manufacturers and application developers.
After the government’s decision not to block the sale to Ericsson, we’ll have to wait and see if RIM will be at the severe disadvantage its supporters claim.
A lot of Nova Scotians have expressed concern recently about the home renovation tax credit. Despite the many misconceptions being spread, the truth is that we’re in no danger of losing this tax credit.
Homeowners should continue to use it. They will get the money they’re owed — period.
The Liberal party has expressed its unequivocal support for this tax credit, and legislation to implement the credit will be passed before tax time in 2010.
Because this tax credit is part of the budget plan already passed in Parliament, the Canada Revenue Agency can treat it as law.
By way of background, a budget implementation bill was passed by Parliament earlier this year with the support of the Liberal party. But the Conservatives did not include the home renovation program in that piece of legislation. In fact, Liberal finance critic John McCallum specifically asked Finance Minister Jim Flaherty to include it in this spring’s budget implementation legislation.
Frankly, I think they saved it so they could try to scare Canadians.
Furthermore, Mr. Flaherty’s associate deputy minister, Stephen Richardson, has said: "Even if for some reason there were not a legislative follow-up in the current Parliament for the home renovation tax credit, it would still be open to a subsequent Parliament, a subsequent government, to ratify the effect of the provision by passing the legislation" (government operations committee, Feb. 10).
And Toronto Dominion Bank chief economist Don Drummond, a former federal Finance Department official, has also said that as long as the implementation details are ultimately approved by Parliament before the 2010 tax filing season, the credit would not be affected (Globe and Mail, Sept. 2).
To make matters worse, the Conservatives said they will introduce a ways and means motion when Parliament resumes sitting on Sept. 14, but this is only required for an increase in spending. The home renovation tax credit is a tax reduction, so it doesn’t require a ways and means motion.
In my view, this is the kind of dishonest political trick that this government plays so often to manipulate voters.
Make no mistake, the Liberal Party of Canada is fully in support of the home renovation tax credit. Canadians will not be fooled by the Harper government’s attempts to deceive them into thinking otherwise.
Geoff Regan is the Liberal MP for Halifax West.
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A lot of Nova Scotians have expressed concern recently about the home renovation tax credit. Despite the many misconceptions being spread, the truth is that we’re in no danger of losing this tax credit.
Homeowners should continue to use it. They will get the money they’re owed — period.
The Liberal party has expressed its unequivocal support for this tax credit, and legislation to implement the credit will be passed before tax time in 2010.
Because this tax credit is part of the budget plan already passed in Parliament, the Canada Revenue Agency can treat it as law.
By way of background, a budget implementation bill was passed by Parliament earlier this year with the support of the Liberal party. But the Conservatives did not include the home renovation program in that piece of legislation. In fact, Liberal finance critic John McCallum specifically asked Finance Minister Jim Flaherty to include it in this spring’s budget implementation legislation.
Frankly, I think they saved it so they could try to scare Canadians.
Furthermore, Mr. Flaherty’s associate deputy minister, Stephen Richardson, has said: "Even if for some reason there were not a legislative follow-up in the current Parliament for the home renovation tax credit, it would still be open to a subsequent Parliament, a subsequent government, to ratify the effect of the provision by passing the legislation" (government operations committee, Feb. 10).
And Toronto Dominion Bank chief economist Don Drummond, a former federal Finance Department official, has also said that as long as the implementation details are ultimately approved by Parliament before the 2010 tax filing season, the credit would not be affected (Globe and Mail, Sept. 2).
To make matters worse, the Conservatives said they will introduce a ways and means motion when Parliament resumes sitting on Sept. 14, but this is only required for an increase in spending. The home renovation tax credit is a tax reduction, so it doesn’t require a ways and means motion.
In my view, this is the kind of dishonest political trick that this government plays so often to manipulate voters.
Make no mistake, the Liberal Party of Canada is fully in support of the home renovation tax credit. Canadians will not be fooled by the Harper government’s attempts to deceive them into thinking otherwise.
Geoff Regan is the Liberal MP for Halifax West.
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Click here to read Geoff's comments on CBC's The House (Aug. 22 2009) on the recall of Natural Resources Committee over medical Isotopes.
Click here to read Ian McAllister's Herald review of Nova Scotia: Visions of the Future edited by Lesley Choyce which includes a essay written by Geoff. (Aug. 23, 2009)
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Halifax Herald
August 18, 2009
OTTAWA (CP) - Federal officials will hold an emergency meeting Friday to discuss the isotope crisis. Liberal MPs requested the meeting which spokesman Geoff Regan, who represents Halifax West, says will involve discussions with nuclear medicine specialists and provincial health ministers. The committee also hopes to hear from Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., and medical isotope distributor MDS Nordion. Regan says the natural resources committee last met in June and that much has happened since then. Isotopes have been in short supply since a leaking nuclear reactor in Chalk River, Ont., was shut down last May.
Bitter Commons session ends for summer on collegial note
June 19, 2009 - 16:09
Bruce Cheadle, THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA - Stockwell Day thundered down a back stairway towards the House of Commons, his red necktie flying over his shoulder and a schoolboy grin lighting up his face.
The Conservative minister for international trade was running late for Parliament's session-ending vote Friday afternoon - a vote that in theory could have toppled the minority government and sent Canadians into a second general election in nine months.
But Day's summer-recess smile told the real story for all four political parties in the House.
There was no drama in the routine vote on some $5 billion in supplementary spending estimates. Stephen Harper's Conservatives and Michael Ignatieff's Liberals combined to pass the measure by a vote of 214-82 against the perfunctory opposition of the Bloc Quebecois and NDP.
There were no catcalls or heckling, and little enough applause. The predominant emotion in all four corners appeared to be relief.
After a final week of heated rhetoric and brinksmanship, the last act was a warm and collegial affair. The centre aisle of the Commons before the early-afternoon vote looked like a cocktail party.
A smiling Geoff Regan, the Liberal critic who's been hounding Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt over isotopes for weeks, chatted up the equally animated Conservative.
Quebec Tory minister Denis Lebel backslapped Liberal provocateur Denis Coderre.
Glen Pearson, a soft-spoken Grit generally regarded as about the least partisan MP in Parliament, wandered over to shake the hand of Canada's most partisan of prime ministers, then stayed to talk.
A string of Tories paid the same respects to Ignatieff.
"Despite the 45 minutes of nonsense every day that we see in question period, Parliament did function," Jay Hill, the Conservative House leader, said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
Perhaps more surprisingly for a Harper Conservative, Hill didn't just tip his hat to his Commons colleagues, but also to the Tories' favourite scratching post: the unelected, unaccountable upper chamber.
"There was pretty good co-operation from all parties on this side," said Hill, "and the two parties in the Senate."
Twenty pieces of legislation received royal assent since the House returned in January, and as many as a half-dozen more could clear the Senate before the upper chamber rises for the summer on Tuesday.
"That's a fairly major accomplishment," said Hill.
The voting scene, and Hill's assessment, are worth preserving in mind as Canadians contemplate the autumn return of Parliament and a fresh round of confidence votes.
This session's final week began with Ignatieff demanding the government come up with an immediate plan to reform Employment Insurance, among other measures, or face defeat.
By Wednesday, Harper and Ignatieff had negotiated a face-saving, bipartisan panel to discuss EI reform over the summer, and the crisis was averted.
Despite the clear, school's-out relief written on the faces of a number of New Democrats, the NDP was still grousing about the deal Friday.
Harper won Liberal support with a simple blue ribbon panel, said NDP Leader Jack Layton, which "isn't going to do anything to help people over the summer."
"Making Parliament work means securing gains for Canadians that the government was unwilling to do in the first place," the party said in an end-of-session release.
But by that measure, the second session of Canada's 40th Parliament was a qualified success.
The Conservative government, against all its ideological principles, rolled out a big-spending, stimulus-laden budget in January - the very antidote being demanded by the combined opposition.
Hill called it the signature accomplishment of the spring.
Now Harper has agreed to further reforms of Employment Insurance - in collaboration with the official Opposition, no less
Roundtable member says re-examine NAFTA
TB News Source Web Posted: 2009-04-16 at 13:48
The federal government must take immediate action and re-examine NAFTA to aid the Northwestern Ontario forestry industry, said two participants of a forestry roundtable Thursday.
The roundtable discussion at the Travelodge Airlane Hotel included Northwestern Ontario representatives from First Nations communities, labour unions, municipalities and the academic community.
"We heard from people here today who are upset," said Liberal natural resources critic Geoff Regan. "They are angry, they are in distress… they want to see the Government of Canada take action now."
Calling the industry a "critical part of our country," Regan said the government can take action by providing loan guarantees to businesses and improving the current Employment Insurance program for unemployed workers.
Another way for the government to aid the forestry industry is to re-examine Canada’s role in NAFTA, said Lakehead University faculty of forestry member Peggy Smith.
"I think it's (NAFTA) been restricting (Northwestern Ontario’s) ability to set our own rules and policies in terms of how we manage our natural resources," Smith said. "The forest industry, the way it exists, has been transformed and it’s never coming back."
Environment Canada indicates funding on tap for ACAP
Despite recent doubts, federal officials say they will keep their promise to fund several environmental groups throughout Atlantic Canada.
Sixteen non-profit, multi-stakeholder organizations, known as the Atlantic Coastal Action Program, have been waiting for the Harper government to reaffirm large funding amounts as they approach the end of their fiscal year, Tuesday.
An Environment Canada official told the Cape Breton Post, Friday, funding would be available but did not specify how much.
"We don't have a (spokesperson) available today, but I can let you know that the Atlantic Coastal Action Program, part of our ecosystem initiative in the region, will continue to be funded in 2009-2010," said Paula Franchellini, media relations for Environment Canada.
Concerns over the funding were raised this week by the Green Party of Canada, which questioned the commitment, saying ACAP members had been unofficially told their contracts would not be renewed.
In a media release from Liberal environment critic David McGuinty and Halifax West MP Geoff Regan, both said the Conservative minority is leaving ACAP in financial limbo.
Eleanor Anderson, executive director of ACAP-Cape Breton, said ACAP organizations operate independently, but are formally linked to each other to create a stronger force.
Anderson said groups received about $80,000 from Environment Canada last year for their core funding, which is often used to leverage other partners for their programs and services.
According to Anderson, some ACAP sites have been struggling and a loss of core funding would mean closing their doors.
"It's very frustrating and very discouraging that we're all working so hard," said Anderson.
The news comes as a relief to the Cape Breton ACAP officials who want to continue working with the government.
Environment Canada has a long-standing relationship with ACAP organizations to provide social and economic benefits to communities and environments.
ACAP was first initiated by the federal department in 1991 to help the Atlantic region restore and sustain watersheds and adjacent coastal areas. In order to survive financially, groups say they receive funding from federal, provincial and community partners.
Cape Breton Post March 28, 2009
MPs urge feds to invest in shipbuilding industry
By The Canadian Press
Thu. Jan 15
A team of opposition MPs from Nova Scotia is calling on Ottawa to stimulate the economy by immediately investing federal dollars in Canada's shipbuilding industry.
The four politicians — Liberal Geoff Regan, Independent Bill Casey and New Democrats Peter Stoffer and Megan Leslie — were flanked by about 100 workers at the Halifax Shipyard during a chilly, morning news conference.
Stoffer says $22 billion worth of work needs to be done, creating jobs from coast to coast.
Regan says the Canadian navy needs new supply ships and the coast guard needs new coastal patrol boats — and those vessels should be built in Canada.
Today, about 700 work at the Halifax Shipyard, owned by Irving Shipbuilding Inc., but at one time the payroll peaked at 1,700.
Rick Clarke, president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour, says shipbuilding jobs are known to create a large number of spinoff jobs, making the industry an ideal candidate for Ottawa's economic stimulus package.
A team of Nova Scotia MPs is appealing to the Harper government to spend money on the shipbuilding industry.
New Democrats Peter Stoffer and Megan Leslie, Liberal Geoff Regan and Independent Bill Casey made their plea Thursday flanked by about 50 shipbuilders outside the Halifax Shipyard.
Regan said the federal Conservative government must include shipbuilding in the upcoming budget.
"It's a very important thing for our economy. It creates great jobs. It can add to the jobs and add to the skills in this world-class workforce," he said.
If the government wants to kick-start the economy, spending on ships makes sense, said Koren Beaman.
Beaman was laid off from her job as a labourer at the yard last Friday.
"We need our ships made here in Canada, and keep our money here. Don't send it nowhere else. I mean, there's lots of people here that can do the work," she said.
The MPs say there's $22 billion worth of work needed, including new supply ships for the navy and coastal patrol boats for the coast guard. They say any work should be done in Canada.
The minority Conservatives are set to unveil their budget on Jan. 27. They need the support of opposition MPs to pass the budget, and stay in power.
Harper has said the budget will be "comprehensive" and one of the biggest in a long time in order to deal with the economic crisis.
A $50-million boost
Province, feds pony up for paving, bridges
By DAVID JACKSON Provincial Reporter
Paving projects and bridges will get the bulk of $50 million in federal and provincial funding announced Wednesday.
Much of the work has already been completed or is underway.
For example, paving and safety improvements on 100-series highways were done this summer and fall, upgrading Highway 4 from East Bay to Big Pond has started and is scheduled to be done next year, and three bridge projects are done, another is underway and set for completion next year, and another will be tendered in 2009.
Some of the money comes from the $25 million in infrastructure funding that Ottawa has allotted to each provinceannually until 2014.
The province matches that money, plus Halifax Regional Municipality is kicking in about $6 million for some projects in the municipality, including an interchange connecting Highway 102 to Larry Uteck Boulevard in Bedford and another new interchange on Highway 101 at Beaver Bank.
Defence Minister Peter MacKay, on behalf of federal Infrastructure Minister John Baird, said investing in infrastructure helps the economy.
"Today’s infrastructure news is a testament to the Government of Canada’s commitment to help the province and Canada meet its pressing infrastructure needs and priorities," Mr. MacKay said at a Halifax news conference.The announcement came the day after Mr. Baird was in Halifax talking to provincial ministers and municipal leaders from Atlantic Canada about how to get more federal infrastructure cash flowing.
Many government leaders have said infrastructure spending would be an effective stimulus in the sagging economy. Nova Scotia wants its connector roads to be eligible for federal funds.
South Shore-St. Margarets MP Gerald Keddy said Ottawa is not likely to approve a plan that would allow the province to spend national infrastructure money paving secondary roads.
"Our challenge . . . as the federal government is to roll out an infrastructure package that will be helpful to the province and (create) a long-term vision of Nova Scotia.
"The province’s challenge is to try to find the extra money that they need to cost-share this if we accelerate funding."
Mr. Baird was more like the Grinch than like Santa, said Halifax West Liberal MP Geoff Regan.
"The province, municipalities and other stakeholders were saying as late as yesterday that they need accelerated funding, that they need streamlined process and they’re looking for changes to allocation rules so they can deal with immediate infrastructure needs and have a positive impact on the economy.
"And what the government announced today were investments that only come into effect in 2011-2014, as I understand it. So it addresses nothing that Baird was told yesterday. It’s no way to respond to the crisis in the economy."
Provincial Liberal Leader Stephen McNeil said no one should be under the illusion that Wednesday’s announcement is about stimulating the economy because the projects were already in the works or done.
"Those commitments were made previously by this government and everyone expected those to be met. What we were looking for from Ottawa was this additional money which we would hear announced for some new projects, new ways to stimulate the economy of the province."
Other provincial projects include a Highway 111 Mount Hope interchange and a new weigh-in scale in Enfield. Some of the funding will also cover upgrades to the Cheticamp water utility and helping expand broadband coverage in the province.