 By Staff
March 24th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton Regional Police Service Fraud Bureau, in partnership with investigators from Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC) have concluded an investigation into Identity Fraud.
In October 2016, a victim reported having a motor vehicle registered to him in which he had no knowledge. The victim became aware of the unauthorized registration as a result of receiving 407 ETR bills.
 Every car sold has to be registered to someone – that proved to be a problem to one victim – there are others. A subsequent investigation by the HRPS and OMVIC discovered an independent auto dealer in Milton responsible for the false registrations. Further an additional four people from the GTA were identified as victims of the same scam. The location of these falsely registered vehicles is unknown at this time, however HRPS believes one of the vehicles has been involved in a break and enter offence in Southern Ontario.
 A car dealership was abusing the process of registering cars. Police want to talk to anyone who finds that a car they never owned has been registered in their name. The HRPS, with assistance of OMVIC, executed search warrants at the Milton dealership and residence of the dealership principles.
As a result, two Mississauga men have been arrested and charged as follows:
Jan KOWALCZYK (59yrs), charged with 6 counts of Identity Fraud, 6 counts of Uttering Forged Documents
and
Justin KOWALCZYK (25yrs), charged with 5 counts of Identity Fraud and 5 counts of Uttering Forged Documents
Police and OMVIC have seen a growing trend in the false registration of vehicles for fraudulent gain. Police are seeking information from the public in this regard.
 Tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers “See something, Hear something, Say something” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
This is a serious one. The implications from this kind of fraud that has a vehicle registered to someone that knew nothing about the registration touches on insurance and liability issues. When the bandits get inside government organizations – there is a very serious problem.
 By Staff
March 24th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
It is that time of year. The weather is a little bit warmer and boys in rubber boots get curious and adventuresome and at times get a little too close to the creeks where the water is now flowing a lot faster.
 Conservation Halton advises that the Weather Office is forecasting a low pressure system moving into our watershed today (March 24th) which is forecast to produce rain showers up to approximately 20 to 25 mm. Rain is expected to continue over the weekend with total amounts between 10 to 15 mm expected on both Saturday and Sunday. The system is expected to move out of our watershed by Monday.
 Water levels in watershed creeks will rise significantly during the weekend. Caution around the edges of creeks – especially with children. Flooding is not anticipated, however the forecasted precipitation in conjunction with saturated ground conditions will result in higher than normal water levels and flows in local streams.
Conservation Halton is asking all residents and children to stay away from all watercourses and structures such as bridges, culverts and dams. Elevated water levels, fast flowing water, and slippery conditions along stream banks continue to make these locations extremely dangerous. Please alert children in your care of these imminent dangers.
This Watershed Conditions Statement – Water Safety will be in effect through Monday March 27, 2017. Conservation Halton will continue to monitor stream and weather conditions and will provide updates as required.
 By Pepper Parr
March 24th, 2017
BURLINGTON,ON
The federal government released its budget for the year on Tuesday. The job of the government is to now sell that budget – convince us that what they have decided to do is the right thing for all of us.
Would that it were so.
As a member of the Cabinet Karina Gould is expected to get out there and tell the story.
Here is her version of that story.
Yesterday, Minister of Finance, Bill Morneau, shared Budget 2017, delivering on the Government’s ambitious agenda to support Canadians at every stage of their lives, transform our neighbourhoods and communities and give every Canadian a real and fair chance at success.
With its strong focus on innovation, skills, partnerships and fairness, Budget 2017 takes the next steps in securing a more prosperous future for all Canadians.
The investments in infrastructure we make today will deliver clean, sustained economic growth; building stronger, more inclusive communities and create more jobs for Canadians.
I encourage you to visit https://www.budget.gc.ca/2017 to review the budget in its entirety; I am also pleased to share some highlights that will have a particular resonance for our community and its people.
Budget 2017 proposes $300 million for a Smart Cities Challenge Fund, which will support a competition among cities across Canada, to develop smart cities plans, bringing together local governments, citizens, businesses, and civil society.
Where will Burlington be in that challenge?
In addition, to support our government’s plan for a clean, sustainable economy, over the next 11 years, $21.9 billion will be invested in green infrastructure, including initiatives that will support the implementation of the Pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change.
 There appears to be an assumption that the Liberal Party will still form the government in 11 years.
Budget 2017 works to build stronger communities by improving access to early learning, child care and affordable housing. It will invest $11.2 billion over 11 years for an inclusive National Housing Strategy, to help ensure Canadians have affordable housing that meets their needs.
 The Red dress – brought out for those celebratory occasions – winning the election. To give kids and their parents a real and fair chance at success, the Government will invest $7 billion over 10 years, starting in 2018-19, to support and create more high quality, affordable, child care spaces across the country. To provide better support to young families, Budget 2017 will also commit $886.4 million over five years to make employment insurance, caregiving, parental and maternity benefits more flexible for Canadians to meet their different needs.
Young Canadians will be the ones who drive the future growth of Canada’s economy, yet too many struggle to find practical work experience that leads to good, well-paying jobs. Last year, the Government announced new investments in the Youth Employment Strategy and the Canada Summer Jobs program, which help to create short-term job opportunities for students between the ages of 15 and 30.
Budget 2017 provides an additional $395.5 million over three years, for the Youth Employment Strategy, for additional employment and skills development opportunities for young Canadians. Combined with Budget 2016 measures, these investments will help more than 33,000 vulnerable youth develop the skills they need to find work or go back to school; create 15,000 new green jobs and provide over 1,600 new employment opportunities for youth in the heritage sector.
Budget 2017 will also invest $221 million over five years to renew and expand funding for Mitacs, a not-for-profit organization that builds partnerships between industry and educational institutions, to help it meet its goal of providing 10,000 work-integrated learning placements for Canadian post-secondary students and graduates each year. As well as $2.7 billion over six years to boost skills training and employment support for those unemployed and underemployed under the Labour Market Transfer Agreements.
Budget 2017 helps connect companies on a global scale, takes an innovative and collaborative approach to solving modern challenges, and helps businesses get what they need to grow. Starting in 2017-18, Budget 2017 will invest $950 million over five years, to support “super-clusters”, dense areas of business activity that energize economies and act as engines of growth. These “super-clusters” have the greatest potential to accelerate economic growth, through a competitive basis. The competition will launch this year and focus on super-clusters that enhance Canada’s global competitiveness by focusing on highly innovative industries such as advanced manufacturing, clean technology and health/bio-sciences, as well as infrastructure and transportation.
Will Burlington ever have super-cluster status or will we be a part of what Hamilton is clearly becoming – a fast growing city that has all the pieces in place to become an economic and technical hub of some significance.
To help coordinate and simplify innovation programs available to businesses, Budget 2017 proposes to establish Innovation Canada, a new platform led by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. Innovation Canada will lead the creation of Canada’s economic growth strategies.
Canada’s 150th Anniversary reminds us that we have a lot to be thankful for. Economically, our talented, skilled, diverse and innovative workforce gives us tremendous potential for growth. Our values, stories and culture shine for the world to see. That is why we will continue to invest in our people, our communities and our economy, to build a better future for generations to come.
That’s a boat load of promises – what doesn’t get even a mention is the waiting game the Canadian government has to play until it gets a clear idea as to what the government of the United States is going to do and where their intention to re-negotiate the NAFTA agreement that underpins the automotive trade between Canada and the United States is going to take us.
Karina Gould has real work experience in international trade matters and she will be listened to carefully when she speaks at the Cabinet table. The people of Burlington would love to hear what she thinks – and perhaps be included in that thinking. As Minister of Democratic Institutions on would think she would take this route almost automatically.
Perhaps she will grow into that role.
Gould now runs two sets of offices: the one in Burlington is the place you and I go to when we have a problem with Revenue Canada or the Passport people. That office, located in the Burlington Mall takes care of those all-important voters.
 Bigger office and bigger desk in Ottawa. Gould also has an office in Ottawa – which is a lot different than the Burlington operation. It is part of a government that deals with any number of different issues in a single day. Some of the work is part of a plan or an initiative that has been put in place – at other times Gould is reacting to issues that have come up and need an almost instant response.
As a Cabinet Minister she is part of a team that is tightly integrated
Being a part of a government is a two part job – first to ensure that you can stay in power and second to run the country and provide the services that are needed and to study and research and attempt to determine what the future is going to require.
That means having a bureaucracy that does all the grunt work and advises the Minister.
The pace in the Ottawa office can be very hectic. Getting the 15 minutes we got for the interview we published yesterday included four phone calls to let us know that Gould couldn’t call at the scheduled time – we would have to wait. She was needed in the House of Commons – there were several votes that were going to be taken.
When a Minister of the Cabinet is “on” they are on for every minute of the day. And some of those days are very long.
The team in the Burlington office are as proud as punch of their Member of Parliament. Some of the staff positions have gone through an upgrade with more professionalism clearly evident.
 Every constituent counts. The woman who handles communications and community outreach is a Muslim with a very well-honed sense as to what is happening in the city and the work that needs to be done. She holds a degree in philosophy as well as a certificate from Mohawk College in communications.
Newly married she gently rubs her tummy during our conversation – her first child is due in August. This child, a boy, will become the office baby with all the attendant oohs and awes.
There were two staffers at the meeting – the second one looked at me and said: Pepper – don’t you dare ask?
Just wondering.
Part 1 of the interview with Cabinet Minister and Burlington Member of Parliament Karina Gould.
 By Staff
March 24th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
It isn’t over yet friends.
The 14 members of the Program Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) decided last night that they wanted on more kick at the can – and while the Chair, HDSB superintendent Scott Podrebarac wasn’t excited about the idea – it became evident that there were enough people who wanted to meet again to talk about innovation and how the Board of Education might look at different options when it comes to closing schools.
 The PAR members deliberating with the public watching and listening. As well, it had become clear that the original time table could not be met. So everything got bumped back by about as much as a month.
Monday, April 17, 2017 is the first date to submit online Delegation Request Form for the May 8 Delegation Night.
April 20, 2017 – First date to submit online Delegation Request Form for the May 11 Delegation Night.
April 21: Director’s Final Report will now be posted on April 21
April 26th: Committee of the Whole will meet on April 26 at 6:00 pm to discuss the Director’s Final Report that will have been distributed to the Board of Trustees. The Committee of the Whole meeting will take place at the J.W. Singleton Centre (2050 Guelph Line, Burlington). This meeting will be live-streamed on the Board website. If additional audience capacity is required, it will be available at M.M. Robinson High School (2425 Upper Middle Road, Studio Theatre).
 It was standing room only at the information meeting in March. May 8 delegation night
May 11 delegation night
Delegation Nights will be May 8th and May 11th. There will be 25 delegations heard each evening. A delegation lasts five minutes. Traditionally delegations are recognized on a first come first served basis. Cheryl deLugt, a PARC member representing Pearson high school, asked if that policy would apply to the PAR matter and was told that there would be a different arrangement for this matter.
Monday May 8, 2017 (6 pm) – Public Delegation Night. These evenings will be live-streamed on the Board website. The meeting will take place at the J.W. Singleton Centre. Seating priority in the Boardroom will be given to delegates. If additional audience capacity is required, it will be available at M.M. Robinson High School (2425 Upper Middle Road, Studio Theatre).
May 11 (6 pm) – Public Delegation Night. These evenings will be live-streamed on the Board website.
Location: J.W. Singleton Centre (2050 Guelph Line). Seating priority in the Boardroom will be given to delegates. If additional audience capacity is required, it will be available at M.M. Robinson High School (2425 Upper Middle Road, Studio Theatre).
 An early December meeting had some empty seats. May 17: Director’s Final Report Report goes Board of Trustees for “information”. Location: J.W. Singleton Centre (2050 Guelph Line). If additional audience capacity is required, it will be available at M.M. Robinson High School (2425 Upper Middle Road, Studio Theatre).
June 7: Final Vote by the trustees will be made on June 7. Final Report to Board of Trustees for “decision”. Location: J.W. Singleton Centre (2050 Guelph Line). If additional audience capacity is required, it will be available at M.M. Robinson High School (2425 Upper Middle Road, Studio Theatre).
 By Pepper Parr
March 24th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
During the Program Accommodation Review (PAR) deliberations taking place at the Public School Board, and in the comments made by people in the Gazette, mention is often made of how the 1800 empty seat problem could be solved if the Catholics just moved into the public schools.
Words like that reflect a serious misunderstanding of the country’s culture and constitutional history. The existence of the Catholic schools is far more than culture and constitutionality. We asked former Halton Catholic District School Board chair Jane Michael to explain the reason we have Catholic schools. Here is what she had to say:
When my kids were growing up, I made it clear that to get anywhere in life, you had to set clear goals, have a very strong work ethic and you had to be honest. A very high value was placed on education. Coming from parents of immigrants, on both sides of my family, that value was instilled very early in life. In short, there were high expectations to work hard, learn and succeed.
We chose to send our children to Catholic school.
I have seen it written on many a wall –
Christ is the reason for this school. He is the unseen but ever present teacher in its classrooms. He is the model of its facility and the inspiration of its students.
 St Anne Catholic elementary school in the Alton Village In the Catholic schools, in addition to the teaching of the Ontario Curriculum, a routine of praying is included, a respect for God and for the Church as well as for oneself. The students embody multiculturalism. The educators are united in teaching from a moral compass.
There has been a growing discussion around a one school system. Still, all three political parties are on record as supporting the Catholic school system as an integral part of publicly funded education in Ontario. In particular, the discussion revolves around a one board system. This ignores the fact that Ontario has four overlapping school boards.
Catholic education is part of Ontario, rooted in history. In 1867, the British North America Act guaranteed the educational rights held by minorities at Confederation. I firmly believe that the solemn promise made at the time of Confederation should be kept. It is hard to ignore the wishes of 650,000 children. Ontario is offering publicly funded French schools, Art schools, gifted schools, plus AP/IB schools.
Catholics have paid for their own system and despite changes in funding, still do so today. Catholics are more than one-third of the province’s population, and if I add up Catholic school board supporters, I may say that we are self-funded, as opposed to publicly-funded. Catholic schools have maintained their place in Ontario’s public education system for almost 170 years. It is the Constitutional mandate of Catholic schools to provide Catholic education to Catholic students.
The Catholic school boards have the preferential right to hire Catholic teachers, committed to the goals of the Catholic school system This right is extended to publicly funded social welfare agencies. Catholic high schools admit non-Catholic students, providing open access. Catholic education has grown to include a supporting strong infrastructure of Catholic organizations. Ontario’s French language school system is also divided into public and Catholic. The French Catholic system is supported by French Catholic parents and ratepayers. Ontario Catholic school boards consistently meet or exceed provincial expectations.
My kids’ Catholic elementary and secondary schools were and are, deeply invested communities. Our community, one of warmth and faith, prepares the mind and the soul for the future. Teaching combined academic lessons with those on morals, and good behaviour, and is consistent with religious instruction throughout the whole year. For my family, that was the best of both worlds. Everyone goes through difficult times in life, and going to Catholic school and having faith is very important in order to survive these times.
Catholic education focuses on the entire child; their mental, physical and spiritual selves, as well as core values we have attempted to instill at home. Education is, and always be, a priority in my home, and the school reinforced the need to study and be decent human beings.
Having God in the school makes these kids grow into pretty great people. And, it’s not about being indoctrinated into any one religion. Catholic schools teach the kids to respect others and their religions as well. Catholic Boards mandate that students in Grade 11 study World Religion. When our kids came home from school, they told us of their experiences with the Church and school. I think it helps with behaviour once they know what God expects of them. They want to please God as well as others and they want their parents to be happy and proud of them. Understanding other groups and others’ beliefs is an important part of Catholic education’s teachings; respecting and affirming the diversity of today’s world.
Immersion in Catholic school culture, where religious themes are woven throughout classes and extracurricular activities each day made God a consistent presence and force in the lives of my kids and their classmates. I will always choose Catholic schools. Education is an intensely personal family choice. Historically, the education of our children was always conducted by family. That remains today. Kids spend the majority of their day in school. I will always look for what is in my family’s best interest.
Speaking to a high school graduation class, a graduate came up to me afterwards and said: “I didn’t really get it – why going to a Catholic school mattered so much. Now that I am about to leave, I know that God will always be with me, that He’ll always keep me safe, and He’ll help me whatever life has in mind for me. I’m not afraid anymore”.
It doesn’t get better than that.
 Jane Michael is a former Chair of the Halton Catholic District School Board.
 By Ray Rivers
March 24th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
In a couple of weeks the City of Hamilton will be hosting its Big Picture event, an opportunity for the arts and cultural industries to come together and tell city government how to make arts and culture the city’s engine of growth. It’s all part of the economic evolution taking place in Hamilton, a city known as a poor cousin to it’s noisy neighbour, Toronto.
 Decades of pollution that fouled the air and polluted the water and created some immense wealth for a few – certainly not the steel plant pensioners will pictures like this be in Hamilton museums only? Many commercial institutions have long deserted Hamilton, following the sweet smell of money and drifting to that other big smoke. Even the ‘steel-town’ moniker no longer fits since Stelco was raped and dismembered by a US competitor. Hamilton has struggled with its identity for decades, suffering economic malaise and some of the highest property taxes in the province until just recently.
And even twenty years after a forced amalgamation of surrounding area communities, intended to fix the city, it still struggles with its identity. It is not uncommon for suburban politicians to occasionally play the parochially divisive card of what’s-in-it-for-me, threatening progressive initiatives such as transit systems not in their wards. And there is still the odd die-hard anti-amalgamation separatist in the sticks, where I live.
 When the steel plants eventually go – will this become an interesting residential development? Still, the city’s leaders have come to a genuine consensus that Hamilton’s road-map to future prosperity follows the route of developing its emerging arts and culture sector into a thriving industry. After all they’ve seen the numbers. The Conference Board of Canada estimates that municipal investment into the arts returns anywhere from $7 to $12 on the dollar. That beats trying to keep the old steel plant alive.
The Chamber of Commerce agrees with Council, but switching to the right-side of the brain for a community too often focused on steel, coal and electricity is not without its challenges. And there is a lot of competition out there, including a growing list of other communities also looking to break into the arts business big league, and attracting all of that talent for themselves. Recall that good old Hog Town has more than 120 professional companies performing on more than 40 stages, and is third in annual ticket sales globally, just behind New York and London.
 The Philharmonic doesn’t get all that much in the way of funding from Hamilton’s city council Another issue is money. The Hamilton Spectator recently reported that Hamilton remains far behind most other cities in arts funding per capita. It points out that the Art Gallery, the Philharmonic Orchestra and Theatre Aquarius get less municipal funding than other similar organizations across the country. And with Hamilton expected to outperform the national economy this would be a good time to correct that financial imbalance.
But money is not the only impediment to attracting artists and their audiences/customers. City bylaws, zoning and building codes, transportation routes and parking all have a role to play and no doubt will be on the table as part of the discussion of the Big Picture. Then there is the matter of where artists work and sleep – workshops and housing. That used to be an easy problem to solve given Hamilton’s traditionally low housing prices and rental rates.
 There is certainly a base market for the arts in Hamilton. But while we were sleeping Hamilton-Burlington has ballooned into one of the fastest growing housing markets in the country, rivalling and even exceeding Toronto and Vancouver, by rate of change, if not actual value of transactions. Sky-high home prices, low rental vacancy rates, and gridlock are the proverbial chickens coming home-to-roost in TO. So would-be home buyers are heading over to nearby Burlington and Hamilton, driving up prices and driving down accessibility.
 Burlington’s MPP, Eleanor McMahon, who is also Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport has brought home some bacon for Burlington. Burlington’s MPP, Eleanor McMahon, who is also Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, recently announced a new provincial strategy for cultural industries. She points out that the culture sector adds more than $25 billion to Ontario’s economy, supporting approximately 280,000 jobs, and including almost 60,000 folks directly employed in the arts across the province. This is only a strategy, though one expects it will eventually come with some hard currency for that bigger picture the province is promising to paint.
And one has to recall that Hamilton has deep roots and credibility in the cultural arts sector. Karen Kane, James Balfour, Eugene Levy, Martin Short, Lawrence Hill, Steve Paikin, Daniel Lanois, Neil Peart, Rita Chiarelli, Stan Rogers call or called Hamilton their home. Even Rompin’ Ronnie Hawkins, the Hawk, claims he got his start at a local bar in the city. And he’d be a great opener of the event.
 Ray Rivers writes weekly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was a candidate for provincial office in Burlington in 1995. He was the founder of the Burlington citizen committee on sustainability at a time when climate warming was a hotly debated subject. Tweet @rayzrivers
Background links:
Big Picture – Economic History – High Hamilton Taxes – Vacancy Rates –
Housing Prices – Hamilton Hot Prices – Hamilton Economy – Arts Drives Hamilton –
Hot Housing Market – World Theatres – Ontario Strategy – Hamilton Artists –
By Pepper Parr
March 23, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Spending as much as five minutes on what is normally the snooze of the season is not high on the things to do this week list for most people.
But the situation has changed and some people might actually want to spend some time on letting the Board of Education know what they think of the amount of money gets spent on education.
Parents and community members says the Board media release are encouraged to provide input on the 2017-2018 budget priorities. Input may be submitted online until Monday, April 17, 2017
They go on to say: The Halton District School Board values input from parents/guardians, members of the public, staff and students concerning the development of the 2017-2018 budget.
Individuals are encouraged to provide their input concerning the budget priorities for the upcoming school year online through the Halton District School Board website at www.hdsb.ca. Follow the link from the homepage or directly here. Input must be received by Monday, April 17, 2017.
Here is the direct link to the budget input page – get ready for a shock. What you see below is it – one place to write some comments – click finish and you are done. Part of the name in the url is “checkbox” They seem to feel that they have asked for input – and having done that they can check off that box.
 This is the input page – nothing more. They do suggest in the media release that people might want to bone up on what the current policies are but they don’t provide easy to use direct links. The Board of Education web site is nothing to marvel at. Before providing input, individuals are encouraged to review the Board’s Multi-Year Plan, Special Education Plan and Operational Plan. A key objective of the annual budget process is to align the Halton District School Board’s financial resources with these important documents. Information and updates regarding budget development are presented to Trustees at Committee of the Whole meetings.
 By Pepper Parr
March 23, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The Gazette was able to get a short period of time with the Minister of Democratic Institutions, who happens to be Burlington’s Member of Parliament.
A call that was initially planned for a specific time kept being pushed back – her people were great at keeping us in the loop and letting us know that the Minister was going to be needed in the House of Commons for a vote.
When Karina came on the line she was her usual friendly and for the most part open person.
We wanted to know what has changed in her life in the past two years? She went from being the candidate who did a superb on the ground grass roots campaign that came close to shocking Mike Wallace – the Member she defeated.
 Karina Gould with members of her campaign team. Gould did what everyone who wants to get elected has to do – get out on the street and put your face in front of people and let them get to know the real you. She did that and she won – handsomely!
When she got to Ottawa and the Prime Minister’s office began to look at the talent he had to work with and realized that Gould had some unique experience as a result of her work with the OAS – the Organization of the America States, which is organization that represents interests of the 35 independent states of the Americas.
She was now more than just a pretty face.
They made her the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie
Few, very few political novices get given jobs like this when they have next to no House of Commons experience. Gould got put on a fast track and had to learn – quickly. And she did,
Then – not much more than a year later she was asked to become part of Justin Trudeau’s Cabinet. That sort of thing just doesn’t happen every day. A women who has yet to celebrate her 30th birthday is now a Member of Cabinet.
We wanted to know how she was handling these very big and sudden changes.
 A team player! The interview was Ok – but the first part didn’t resonate with us.
We got the ‘I am proud, privileged and honoured to be able to serve the people of Burlington’.
They all say that – but what does it mean? I didn’t know so I kept asking questions – and kept getting the Pablum formula answers.
So I shifted the questions and asked how she was finding the job. Gould talked about the people who stepped up and guided her through the process of learning to become a Member of the House of commons. She said she was fortunate to have people like Cabinet Ministers McCallum and Bennett take her under their wing – and she was indeed fortunate to have these two people guide and direct her. They saw the promise and were prepared to put in the time Gould needed.
I still didn’t think I had gotten to what it is that makes Gould the person she is – the Pablum answers were not what I was looking for.
Gould then began to talk about values – and it was at this point that the real person could be seen. Karina Gould is a part of a family that knows what the Holocaust was all about. She doesn’t wear it on her sleeve – it is just a part of who she is
 While serving as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Development Gould met with people from other governments. Here she meets with a representative from Afghanistan. She was at a Conference with the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie in Istanbul and she began to see how highly regarded Canada was. “I was learning first hand from people this country of ours had helped and beginning to understand who we were.”
“I saw our values being appreciated and valued by others” said Gould “and it was humbling because we tend to take them for granted.”
This happened to Gould again at a conference in Africa – seeing Canada through the eyes of people who envy what we have and aren’t yet able to do the same things for themselves because of the governments they are rules by.
 Karina Gould being worn in as a Cabinet Minister – the youngest woman ever to be appointed to Cabinet. Gould then gets appointed to Cabinet – and again gets put on yet another steep learning curve. Within weeks of her appointment she is in front of a media scrum having to defend a decision made by the government she is now very much a part of.
 Gould at her first media scrum. She handled it very well – and without the support she deserved from the Prime Minister. Gould would never say a word about the support she didn’t get from the Prime Minister. She went in front of the cameras and did what needed to be done took one for the team as it were – and was seen by the very senior members of Cabinet as someone to be watched closely – she could be relied upon.
When media is interviewing a Cabinet Minister there is always a handler on the line. The person that helps her get away and on to the next event. John cut in and said “Pepper just another couple of minutes please”.
I asked about what it means to her to be a Cabinet Minister. “I can feel the weight on my shoulders” she said. I’ll bet she could – a few days before the interview Gould would have sat in on a Cabinet meeting where the approach to selling the budget that was going to be announced in a few days was decided.
 Gould in the House of Commons while then President of the United States Barack Obama is addressing the House. If this Prime Minister is anything like his Father he would have listened very carefully to each member of his Cabinet and then said what he wanted to say.
Gould had said earlier in the interview that the experiences she was having were “once in a lifetime”. What a life time it has been so far.
Hopefully this young woman will continue to mature and we will hear what she thinks and feels. She is genuine – now let’s see how she works for the people she represents, which is not just the 175,000 Burlingtonians.
Tomorrow we will write about her comments on the budget that was released yesterday – and tell you a little bit more about the chatter in her Burlington office where she is well served.
 By Pepper Parr
March 23rd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Growing an economy is not easy.
Almost every second word that comes out of the mouths of the elected set is about creating jobs. The jobs are created by the owners of those small to medium sized business operations that take the risks and create wealth – which the politicians can then tax. Yes, that is being a little cynical.
 Region holds Job Fair at Burlington Convention Centre But jobs – good jobs is the issue. The Regional government does a good job of creating an event where the employers and job seekers can meet in the same place and look each other over.
The Region, in their announcement of the job fair to take place on Wednesday, April 5 from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Burlington Convention Centre point out that there will be more than 70 local employers looking for talent.
Bring your resumes is the word they put out to the job seekers,
In the past the Region has provided services to more than 8,000 job seekers and over 200 employers each year with more than 250 direct placement matches.
Employers from the technology, manufacturing, government, retail and hospitality sectors take part.
The Region works with Employment Ontario and Employment Halton offering resources, one-on-one job search support, pointing employers to training incentives as well as operating an online job board at haltonjobs.ca They direct people to apprenticeship opportunities and programs such as Second Career, which provides assistance to participants as they retrain for a new career.
Employment Halton has two locations and hours of operation that are geared ti people looking for work.
Oakville Location: 2441 Lakeshore Rd W, Oakville, ON L6L 5V5, Canada Unit 16
Hours of Operation:
- Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Every 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month they offer extended office hours until 7 p.m.
Milton Employment Resource Centre (470 Bronte Street South)
Hours of Operation:
- Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
 By Pepper Parr
March 22, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Quantitative? Qualitative?
How many people responded to the survey and was there balance in the responses.
Tuesday evening the PAR Committee members were given a briefing on what the 1611 people who completed the on-line survey had to say about the six options to close high schools that were on the table.
The details on that survey were published as a separate article.
 PARC members writing their comments on large sheets of paper. This PARC has had difficulty with getting good data and pulling information from that data that can be used to determine the best direction.
The process the province put in place to involve parents is now seen as deficient. It is new and will no doubt be changed but the PAR committee has to work with what they have been given.
The chair of the PARC appears to b ready to loosen things up a little. Scott Podrebarac, a Superintendent with the Board, is running meetings under a process that is new – he is sort of learning what to do each meeting. Many of the PAR committee members want a more open process.
Last night the public heard the numbers part of the quantitative part of the data. There was a lot of discussion about the value of the data. The number of responders was small and it was a complex survey with the average time spent by those who completed it amounting to 21 minutes. The Board did no report on the number of people who did not complete the survey.
The qualitative aspect wasn’t discussed on Tuesday. There were tens of thousands in the way of comments. How do they get tens of thousands of comments from 1600 + responses? There could have been as many as seven comments from each person (7 x 1611 = 11,277) and the PAR committee wanted to see every one of them.
 PARC members from Aldershot and Central high schools. There is a significant level of distrust between the Board staff and some members of the PARC. They are complaining about the quality of much of the information they are being given and unhappy with the Terms of Reference they have been asked to work within.
Some members of the PARC feel the Board staff will present just those comments that support their option – which was to close two of the seven high schools.
Board staff talked about privacy issues in releasing all the comments. Blank out anything that identifies anyone responded those PARC members who are unhappy with the way Board staff have been managing the flow of information.
It has taken the 14 PARC members time to begin to work as a group – almost from the beginning the PARC members spent their time and energy defending their schools. When it became evident that both Nelson and Bateman were being considered for closure their representatives became very vocal.
The committee began to feel that the Board staff had them working against each other to save their school when what many of them wanted to do was find a solution that could keep all the schools open
The parents wanted to be part of a process that was going to look for a solution and they felt they weren’t being allowed to do that.
 Lynn Crosby didn’t want to miss a word that was said. It was difficult at times to hear what the PARC members were saying There might have been a bit of a change in the way the Board is managing this process. The trustees are meeting this evening – Wednesday and are expected to add additional meeting time for the PARC members to deliberate.
There is quite a bit more to take place – the real leaders should become more evident very soon.
And everyone is waiting to see what those tens of thousands of comments actually say.
By Pepper Parr
March 22, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The gloves are coming off!
While the Board of Education is considering adding more time for the PAR committee to continue their deliberations there are people who have been working on this file for more than eight weeks who are beginning to get very fed up.
“My personal view” writes an advisor to the Central Strong parents group is “ at this time is to STOP this nonsense immediately. It has become nothing more than another episode of The Twilight Zone.
 The PAR committee members with the advisors. “You, and other ALL other parents and concerned individuals from ANY High School who are VOLUNTEERING their time and resources, are in an unfair fight against people who are getting PAID by you to fight against you and to make you fight against your colleagues and parents from other communities. All the while restricting access to information that they control.
“I strongly suggest that a meeting be called’ inviting ALL parents, concerned individuals, and the media but NOT Board people or Trustees, to consider STOPPING this process ASAP.
 Bateman high school representative on the PARC exchanging views with a parent. “Do not issue a Report and refuse to participate in the BS any longer. Boycott this whole mess and send a petition, signed by everyone, to the Premier and Minister of Education, saying that ‘enough is enough’.
“No Report, No Decision, No Schools closed. All of the Parents and Students win until a FAIR, OPEN and TRANSPARENT process is established by the Ministry of Education. “
The advisor has asked that he not be identified at this point, has been helping the Central parents get data and plan a strategy.
If there is a meeting held the Gazette will cover it.
The line that “No Report, No Decision, No Schools closed” is not accurate. The PARC members are not asked to write a report. The Chair of the ARC a school board Superintendent will write the report from the PARC to the Director.
The PARC members could all walk out tomorrow – won’t make a difference – the Chair will still write a report and mention (maybe in a footnote) that the PARC members chose not to continue.
Hold the meeting and be as public as you can. Then have several of the PAR Committee members write a report of their own and submit it to the Director of Education and demand that he include it in his report to the trustees.
Don’t expect all the PARC members to be part of this approach but if there are enough of them – a majority would b nice – it will have an impact.
This is getting a little feisty isn’t it?
By Staff
March 22, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
On January 14th 2017, two male suspects were seen at Costco in Burlington where they began to follow a customer who was observed purchasing several electronic items.
The suspects then followed the customer to Best Buy in Burlington at which time; one of the suspects phoned Best Buy posing as a Fraud Investigator and reported that the customer may be involved in fraudulent activity. Staff at Best Buy began watching this customer while the original two male suspects made several trips in and out of the store while stealing merchandise.
The two male suspects then followed the customer from Best Buy to a Lakeshore Road underground parking lot where the customer left his vehicle unattended with numerous electronic items valued at $3106.00 which had been purchased at Costco and Best Buy.
The suspects then smashed a passenger side window to gain entry into the victim’s vehicle and stole all of the electronics.
 Unidentified shop lifter captured on video leaving Best Buy Police have identified one of the two male suspects as Gerald Daniel BLANCHARD, 45 of Vancouver, British Columbia who also uses the alias of Ricky WHITE. He was arrested and charged with two counts of theft under $5000 and one count of mischief under $5000. He will appear in Milton court on March 29th 2017.
Police have yet to identify the second suspect who is described as a white male in his 40’s with a heavy build wearing blue jeans, white t-shirt with a black jacket and baseball cap.
These thieves had no idea how deep the police coverage is in the high traffic retail locations.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Constable Mark Urie the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau – Residential Crime Team @ 905-825-4747 Ext. 2338. Tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers “See something, Hear something, Say something” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Pepper Parr
March 22, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
It was a very productive meeting and the Program Accommodation Review heard comments that several thought they would never make – the committee had found its voice – and for the first time ever there was a round of applause from the people – 30 some odd – in the gallery.
The meeting – the fifth to date, started with an overview of the data that was collected through an on-line survey that everyone agreed was not accurate and had no validity in terms of useful information. Nevertheless it did reveal something.
The members of the PARC are not at all excited about closing any of the schools – and they want to take a time out and pause to get a clearer sense of where they are going.
 Cheryl deLugt, a nurse, told the PARC members that she felt they all needed to take a “time out” and determine just what it is they are supposed to be doing. Many other members of the PARC felt the same way. Lester B, Pearson parent Cheryl deLugt, who works as a nurse, told her fellow PARC members that she felt the committee needed a time out and explained a procedure that operating room staff use:
1-is this the right patient, 2-the correct surgery and 3- is it the right procedure.
Many felt that the PARC had not really found its way and didn’t like how the process had gone so far. They want to review what they have done so far and determine how much flexibility they have on what they can put forward.
DeLugt wanted the board to call a time out – pause and look at what has been done and what hasn’t been done and what they might do better. To follow the deLugt dictum they have the right patient; no one is sure they are doing the right thing and few are certain they are doing it the right way.
The Board of Education will meet Wednesday evening and the expectation is that they will revise the schedule that is supposed to have the Director of Education delivering his report to the trustees.
The sense is that more time is needed – quite a bit more, for the PARC people to offer some innovative ideas which they weren’t at all sure they could do.
1611 people responded to the survey. The details on the survey results are covered in a separate story.
 By Pepper Parr
March 22, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Capturing data that is valid, balanced and detailed enough to tell research analysts what people think and what they would like to see done has been a challenge for the Program Accommodation Review Committee (PAR).
The Halton District School Board hired IPSOS Reid to take on the data gathering and the analysis of the data that was gathered as well as create the questions that would give both the Board, the trustees and the members of the PAR the information thy needed.
If you want to count how many chickens there are in a coop – there have to be some chickens – which is an awkward way of saying that IPSOS Reid was never able to get balanced data.
The first survey they did of parents at a December meeting was so skewered to Central high school parents that it was difficult to project what parents from all seven high schools thought about an issue.
The second survey that ended March 13th does not appear to have been all that much better.
IPSOS Reid presented an Overview of the data gathered on what responders thought of the six options for possible school closing were still on the table. The names given to some of the options were not as clear as they needed to be – for example 7b was to not close any of the high schools and change the Hayden boundaries.
 Most of the options that came forward went through some modifications which added an alpha to the number. Thus 7b had at least two changes made to the original content.
The next piece of data explained who was answering the survey – a parent, a student – who?
 The PARC wanted to know who was responding – – the vast majority were parents.
Which school did the responder represent as the next concern. What surprised many was that more of the responders came from Nelson high school which while on the list of possible closures was not nearly as at risk as Central, Pearson and Bateman.
 Knowing who was responding to the survey, which schools they represented the researched asked the responder what they thought the impact would be for each option from their perspective.
The data for all six options was formatted the same way.
We have set these out for each of the six options.
 Kirk Perris, IPSOS Reid researcher who presented the data on the second survey. There were 1611 responses to the survey.
People completing the survey had seven choices from most positive to least positive. The blue area indicated people saw this as having a positive impact. grey was neutral, orange indicated a negative impact.
Kirk Perris, the IPSOS Reid researcher did point out that there was no certainty that the responses were all valid by which he meant that he could not say for certain that one person did not complete the survey many times,
He did point out that the average person who did the survey spent 22 minutes doing so which suggested that the bulk of the responses were valid. This wasn’t a survey you could race through.
Perris said the most important part of the survey was the comments people made – that data will be presented to the PARC at their next meeting on Thursday.
 This option is slightly different than the option Board staff originally put forward. It has more to do with boundary changes than the closing of a specific school.  Once this option – closing Nelson was on the table the parents from that high school suddenly got very active. More Nelson parents responded to the survey than any other school – there involvement is reflected in the data.  Closing Bateman and Pearson would solve the 1800 empty seats – Parents at Pearson felt that if they were given the students that were taken from them and sent to Hayden they would be viable.  This option was the one the Board staff put forward. It had much higher negative responses than the option that appeared to be the most favoured which was #7 – don’t close any of the schools.  This option to not close any of the schools had the most or highest favourable response – but it doesn’t resolve the problem of those 1800 seats that are empty.  Closing just Bateman was not a clear choice – the positives outweighed the negatives but people felt neutral about many of the questions.
By Staff
March 21st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Between March 10th and March 20th 2017, unknown suspect(s) stole a 1999 International Model 3800 72 passenger school bus which had been listed for sale from a parking lot on the North Service Road near Appleby Line in Burlington.
The school bus is yellow in colour with Ontario licence plates BK8359 and “Hamilton Christian Transportation Services” written on the side of it (Pictures of similar bus attached)
 Anyone with information is asked to contact the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau @ 905-825-4747 Ext. 2316. Tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers “See something, Hear something, Say something” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Staff
March 21, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Bikes that go for $4000 and $5100 a pop have been stolen from garages in the city that were left open. Police succeeded in recovering the bikes.
A thief appears to have scoped out a number of locations that had high end bikes in the garage and then made a trip back to snatch them, load them into his vehicle and drive off.
Didn’t work out as planned.
 On March 7th 2017 between 11:00 AM and 9:30 PM, a black with neon green trim Scott Genius mountain bike valued at $4000.00 was stolen from an open garage on Blue Spruce Ave. in Burlington.
On March 13th 2017 at approximately 1:50 PM, a male suspect was seen stealing a black with white framed Cipollini bicycle valued at $5100.00 from an open garage on Casselman Court in Burlington. The suspect was seen fleeing in a grey Jeep Wrangler and a licence plate was obtained.
Members of the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau – Residential Crime Team identified and arrested Trevor ARMSTRONG (30-yrs) of Grimsby in relation to both these thefts.
 He was charged with two counts of break, enter & commit theft and one count of possession of property obtained by crime. ARMSTRONG was released on a Promise to Appear in Milton Court on April 12th 2017.
Police want to remind residents to take precautions to ensure your homes and garages are secure and to report suspicious people and/or vehicles in your neighbourhood to police immediately.
Anyone with information about this or any other break and enter and/or bike theft is asked to contact the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau @ 905-825-4747 Ext. 2316. Tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers “See something, Hear something, Say something” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Staff
March 21st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
We are into the annual Fraud Prevention Month during which the Halton Regional Police Service Regional Fraud Unit will be hosting a Fraud Awareness Information Session on Thursday, March 23, 2017 from 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. in the Region of Halton Auditorium (1151 Bronte Road in Oakville).
 Members of the public are invited to attend the free evening event to learn more about the growing fraud trend in Halton Region and how to protect themselves from becoming victims. Officers with the Unit will be discussing typical scams they have encountered and will provide a series of valuable crime prevention tips. They will also review recent criminal investigations they have undertaken in the past year or so. The session will be followed by a question and answer period.
Reservations are not required and light refreshments will be provided.
For additional information on emergency scams, follow us on Twitter (@HaltonPolice) or visit www.haltonpolice.ca/about/specializedunits/fraud.php
Anyone with information pertaining to a fraud or any other crime is asked to contact the Regional Fraud Bureau Intake Office at 905-465-8741 or Fraud@haltonpolice.ca. Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers “See something, Hear something, Say something” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
 By Staff
March 20th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
IPSOS Reid will not complete the analysis and formatting of the data on parent views related to the possible closing of two high schools in the southern part of the city. The data was collected during the first half of March.
They will deliver the data to the Halton District School Board on Wednesday in advance of the last PARC meeting on Thursday.
On Tuesday they will give a top line overview and discuss some of the major results from the survey.
There were 1611 responses to the survey which was apparently sent to every parent or guardian the school board had an email address for – seems like a very low response for such a contentious issue.
By Pepper Parr
March 20th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
If your household is anything like mine the Netflix subscription is key to whatever time there is for home entertainment or the occasional binge on a series you just learned about.
Lie to Me keeps me away from the writing – I tend to take in three or four episodes at a time
So when an email showed up saying there was a glitch in renewing the subscription I pay close attention, I didn’t want to be cut off.
I use a prepaid credit card for everything I buy online; that allows me to limit any loss that might occur should someone manage to actually get their mitts on the way I pay for things.
I thought maybe I had forgotten to top up the amount on the card.
If you don’t know what a prepaid credit card is – talk to your bank manager. A safe proof way to protect your real credit and at the same time limit any loss.
I have taught myself to look at the url on every piece of email that comes in related to money.
The url is the the name of the address the email came from. In his instance it read: (EXPLAIN)
Take a look at the url on this example: Netflix <noreply@netflix.ssl1.com> Anyone could have made up that email address. You could go on line now and create an email address that reads @netflix.ssl2.com
 This notice was not from Netflix; it was from someone who wanted me to click on that blue line which would direct me to a website where they could begin milking me for personal identity information. Don’t get pulled into things like this – look at the url
This is a legitimate Netflix email url: Netflix <info@mailer.netflix.com>
This was a scam – you can teach yourself the same little tricks and keep your bank happy at the same time.
Few people have any idea how much time the banks have to spend handling the return o funds that were taken illegally from an account. That plus the money that have to pay out.
The cardinal rule is this: If in doubt – don’t. And if it looks to good to be true – it usually isn’t true. Trust your instincts and reign in the greed all of us have.
 By Pepper Parr
March 20th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The leading news story this past few months has been the work being done by the Halton District School Board to close two of Burlington’s seven high schools and the work being done by parent groups to keep their local high school open.
It is no surprise that the two are at odds much of the time.
Part of the process required to close a school is a Program Accommodation Review (PAR) that crates a committee of people, two from each high school, who are tasked with being the official conduit for information shared between the Board of Trustees and school communities.
They were given a framework to guide their deliberations. They had no input on what those guidelines were.
 PARC members putting their choices and comments on large sheets of paper. This was part of the process of whittling down the 30 options that came forward down to the six that are now before the committee. The fourteen people chosen to do this work, which is proving to be close to exhausting, have a tough job to do – and the HDSB doesn’t make it any easier.
The biggest issue appears to be the data that is collected and the information the Board staff pass along.
Parents at a December 2016b meeting entering their choices on hand held devices as they responded to the 25 questions that were asked of the audience. The data had little relevance because it lacked any balance – more than 50% of the respondents were from the one school. Two surveys have been done, the first on December 8th at the New Street Educational centre where those in attendance got to use clickers to indicate their choice on 25 different questions.
The problem with the data that came out of that questionnaire was that more than 50% of the people responding were from central high school. The data was severely skewed to the Central high school view of things.
The survey was prepared by IPSOS Reid, a world class organization that found itself struggling to maintain their reputation – admitting that the December 8th event was not one of their finest moments.
The second survey was done on line and ended March 13th.
 The second survey was released at the first public meeting. It turned out to be less than scientific – anyone from anywhere could do the survey as often as they wished, The data was in the hands of IPSOS Reid at the end of that day. Unfortunately the results are not in the hands of the Board yet – this being early Monday afternoon.
That data will have to at least be looked at by Board staff and then sent along to the 14 PARC members who have just the one evening to go over the data and arrive at their own conclusions.
The 14 PARC members are all volunteers with jobs that keep them busy during the day.
It is both unfair and unprofessional to drop a long data dump on these people at close to the last minute and expect them to make reasonable comments. There is no time for them to talk to their parent groups and get feedback.
 Members of the PARC entering data on large posters. These people have worked long hours and are not being given the respect they are entitled to nor the information they need to form opinions and arrive at conclusions. The PARC was created to act as the official conduit for information shared between the Board of Trustees and school communities. In order for the PARC members to do this they need information on a timely basis – and that just is not happening.
The Ministry of Education Guidelines on the PAR process are new and there are clearly some changes needed.
Consideration might be given to changing the timeline these people have been forced to work within.
The Gazette had hoped to have the survey data in hand and be able to do an analysis so that the public could be aware of that the PARC members are working with.
When a public is shabbily treated by a publicly funded organization they get angry, feel they are being mistreated and look for ways to vent that anger and disappointment. That produces events that are pictured below.
 The turn out at the first public meeting where parents could see what the Board of Education wanted to do had hundreds of people show up. The second public meeting has Board staff limiting the number of people who could be in the very large room – they were close to exceeding Fire Marshall limitations.  Unhappy parents who are not given the information they need get angry – resulting in outbursts like this – no one winds and the reputation of the Board gets badly tarnished and the democratic process take a huge hit. Can you imagine what the next election of school board trustees in 2018 is going to look like
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