Tuesday 12 August 2008

Layton and Lagacé-Dowson Call for $591 Million over Four Years for Public Transport in Montreal

The by-election campaign in Westmount Ville Marie is heating up, with NDP leader Jack Layton calling for the federal government to invest $591 million over the next four years in public transport in the Montreal region. The equivalent of almost 1400 new buses or 267 new subway cars, the investment, Layton argued, would go further toward solving problems of green house gas emissions and petroleum dependence than the recent carbon tax plan announced by Liberal leader Stéphane Dion. .

The transit investment is great good sense, and the kind of thing that Anne Lagacé Dowson , the NDP candidate in Westmount Ville Marie, is championing vigorously as she campaigns. I’ve begun telephone for her—a pleasure, she is the sort of principled intelligent person we need as members of parliament—and I was delighted at the response. One woman, whom I know slightly, told me that she usually votes Liberal but will make the switch this time.

Terrific! It is time to send an unequivocal message that things he got to change, and that the Liberals, who may think that Westmount Ville Marie is a safe riding, have got to be more aggressive on environmental and other issues.

If not, the government should fall, the sooner the better.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Way to go Mary, I too have met with many "old core" Liberals from Westmount Ville Marie who are disgusted with how many times the current Liberals didnt have the backbone to actually vote under Dion (abstained from 43 confidence votes and some even laughed about it when interviewed) and the lack of action taken under 13 years of majority when they really could have done some major changes in policy! To hear that neither Stephane nor Celine Hervieux-Payette, the Lt of Qc, didnt show up for Garneaus launch tells you how "entitled" the Qc Libs still feel. No lessons in modesty every learned from Adscam thats for sure. There are many more reds that are choosing the orange revolution!!!

Mary Soderstrom said...

Your comment is very encouraging. Lik e the orange revlution tag line too.

Perhaps we'll meet on the campaign trail.

Mary