Puzzling comments!

A Confusing Situation

What are we to make of this latest talk about municipal restructuring? In my last column I fell prey to the disease of the pundit: I offered a prediction. This week that prediction: that a municipality of West Northumberland would be created is now looking shaky if you look at the comments of the local MPP. He has been quoted as saying that the plan approved at County Council, in December resulted in amalgamations creating seven municipalities, will be signed off by the Minister of Municipal Affairs and implemented this year. Now no one has ever claimed punditry to be a science but I would have liked a few more weeks before my prediction became toast. So I am going to get even bolder and state that I think it will stand and that the restructuring debate is far from over.

If one looks at Doug Galt's comments, and they have been distributed to all Municipal Councils and the local newspapers, it appears that he is trying for the best of both worlds, in this debate. Firstly he states that the plan adopted by the County will be approved under previous legislation and he supports the right of County Council to make that decision, and secondly he then blasts County Councilors as people who "completely abdicated responsibility for local economic development" suggests that two or three municipalities at most. Now understand that this is the second public letter that has been written in this vein. The first went so far to attack the Deputy Reeve of Cramahe Township as being responsible for the same thing.
Doug Galt, in his term of offices, has hired the services of a personal assistant with the title of communications assistant. This person, Al Hoffman, is considered a professional spinmeister, by some, and surely this latest series of communications must be part of a communications plan. Because nobody in their right minds crank up word processors and fires off letters like these without a plan. So what are the brightest minds in Doug Galt's office up to? Do they know something we don't?
In 1975, when West Northumberland was omitted from Durham Region, as a result of hard work by many local people, West Northumberland set out to create a viable region for its communities. The Lakeshore consolidated and many government services were located in this area. Local economic development was a cooperative effort and for some years (until 1995) the Lakeshore area was a working community of municipalities with many local Provincial services nearby. However in the reign of the "common sense revolution" most of these services have been moved elsewhere, ensuring that taxpayers have to move out of the area for a driving test or real estate transactions, amongst many others. Economic development has been rent asunder by petty local politics and the once functioning Lakeshore community has been reduced to a number of squabbling municipalities in an area bereft of meaningful local provincial services.

The restructuring opportunity would help the Lakeshore act as a community again. Perhaps Doug Galt sees the opportunity to repair, (if he ever acknowledged a problem in the first place), the ruptures in the Lakeshore. Perhaps he thinks, or knows, that the Minister whilst being committed to the County plan by Bill 26 can over-rule that plan by measures introduced in subsequent billed dubbed "Son of Bill 26". For instance he still has the power to send in a commissioner and he knows, absolutely, that it only takes a request signed by 75 taxpayers to initiate a commission. It is rumoured that the Minister wants to get restructuring right the first time. That means that the whole of Northumberland has to be taken care of. West Northumberland (W.N.) can only work properly if the Municipalities not in W.N. are consolidated in natural communities of interest. Those communities of interests cross county borders. Perhaps that is why a rumour exists that ONE commissioner will be looking at the counties of Peterborough, Hastings and Northumberland at the same time.

Many rumours, much speculation and in the absence of pronouncements from the Ministry it will continue: it ain't over til' the fat lady sings and Doug Galt knows it.

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