Ralph Goodale, MP

Real Leadership Builds Bridges, Not Wedges or Firewalls

Stephen Harper and Jim Flaherty are dead wrong to take pot shots at the provincial economy in Ontario. Yes, that province is struggling through a rough patch right now, which is only worsened when the federal government tells investors to go elsewhere.

Such nasty hyper-partisanship serves no useful purpose.

The federal Conservatives should not see themselves as “critics” of the provincial Liberals. They are both duly elected governments and should be working for the common good.

Equally off-base is Thomas Mulcair’s attack against natural resource developments in western Canada. He referred to them as some sort of “disease”, doing harm to the manufacturing sector in eastern provinces.

Professional economists offer mixed opinions on whether thriving energy and mining activity has an indirect impact on the manufacturing sector, but that’s beside the point. The real problem is Mr. Mulcair’s tone and purpose.

His message sounded divisive, pitting region-against-region and sector-against-sector. He’s trying to set up an economic confrontation with Stephen Harper, and he seems prepared to use provincial economies in the West as sacrificial pawns.

This is the sort of thing you inevitably get from sharply polarized politics.

Look at the toxic political environment in the United States. As their economy continues to stagger, there is no possibility of finding solutions that might earn broad-based support because their politics is all about “driving wedges” to push people apart, not pull them together.

Political polarization feeds off conflict. It is deeply divisive and corrosive. And it’s a dangerous game to play in a complicated country like Canada where our national cohesion is always delicate and we need to handle our vast diversity with great care.

Surely what we want and need are successful resource and manufacturing sectors all across this country. Our economy must not become a zero-sum game where if I win, you must lose, and vice versa. We want sustainable growth and expanding prosperity that is broadly based and broadly shared.

Goodale arrives in Kyiv to begin 6-day visit to Ukraine

KYIV, May 13, 2012 – Wascana MP and Liberal Deputy Leader, Ralph Goodale, arrived in the Ukrainian capital today, with six other members of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, to begin a 6-day examination of challenges facing democratic development in Ukraine.

Goodale’s last visit to the country was 10 years ago as Canada’s energy minister, before the 2005 Orange Revolution. He said he was anxious to measure the differences over that decade.

The Canadian all-Party committee will spend time in the cities of Kyiv, Kharkiv and Lviv. They are accompanied by a number of prominent Ukrainian Canadians and will meet representatives of the Ukrainian government, opposition groups, businesses, academics, civil society, regional agencies and organizations and the media.

Their encounters will include direct discussions with the families of political leaders jailed by the incumbent regime. Goodale has raised issues pertaining to these individuals in Canada’s Parliament, and was instrumental in advancing the idea of getting independent international medical assistance for former President Yulia Tymoshenko.

“For more than 120 years, there have been strong family bonds between Canadians and Ukrainians,” said Goodale.

“With the rest of the world, we were elated with the prospects for greater freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Ukraine following the initial triumphs of the Orange Revolution. But lately, some momentum has been lost and important progress may have been reversed.”

Goodale said, “We want to show that Canadians remain keenly interested in further and better Ukrainian democratic development, and the world is watching.”

He said he would press for a large Canadian contingent of well-trained and strongly-led observers to help oversee this fall’s Ukrainian elections, renewed emphasis on democratic development in Canada’s CIDA programming, and the return of Radio-Canada International into eastern Europe.

“I will be asking the people we meet what more Canada can and should do to push for more progress — complete academic freedom, free and independent media, and completely impartial and trustworthy policing and judicial systems are essential.

“I would also like to know what Canadian and Ukrainian businesses can do to promote both democratic and economic development,” he said.

Discussions begin this evening in meetings between the Canadian Parliamentarians and Ukraine’s deputy foreign minister.

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Contact
Scott Bardsley
613-295-1761

STATEMENT: Troubling Conservative indifference to income needs of MS sufferers

The following is the Hansard transcript of a question asked by Wascana MP Ralph Goodale in the House of Commons on Friday, May 11th, and the (non)answer from the government.

Hon. Ralph Goodale (Wascana, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, here is an example of why the massive budget bill needs fixing. To be eligible for a registered disability savings plan, people must first qualify for the disability tax credit, meaning that they have to have a severe disability right now. However, if they suffer from a debilitating condition like multiple sclerosis that leads to serious future problems, but not right now, they are not eligible for the DTC and therefore they cannot have a savings plan now when they could really use it. That is just wrong. For the second time, will the government correct that flaw?

Hon. Gail Shea (Minister of National Revenue, CPC): Mr. Speaker, it has been common practice to include various measures in the budget in the subsequent budget implementation bill. This is nothing groundbreaking, but simply reflects the central and important role of the budget to the government’s agenda. There will be seven full days of debate on the budget bill at second reading alone, before being referred to a committee. This is longer than the average time of debate for a budget bill in at least the last 20 years.

This is the second time this spring that Mr. Goodale has raised the issue of better access to Registered Disability Savings Plans for people with long-term debilitating conditions like MS. The government has shown complete indifference on both occasions.

Afterward he said: “The Conservatives’ hyper-partisan attitude is really appalling. They show no interest the human needs of ordinary Canadians – just crass politics all the time.

“Their approach is unfeeling and cruel, and it will ultimately cause their defeat.”

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