The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

2- The Oakville Beaver, Friday September 12, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Ford's woes sparks reaction from election candidates Continued from page 1 ings for more than a year now about the downturn in manufacturing and the tremendous negative effect this would have on the province of Ontario, they have literally done nothing until their death bed repentance at the engine plant in Windsor last week." Brown said Canada needs a government in power that will listen to the auto caucus, a group of MPs from auto plant ridings that meets regularly to report what they're hearing from their respective companies and unions and then provides that information to the minister of industry and the minister of finance. This caucus allowed the Oakville Ford Assembly Plant to get a $100 million investment from the ruling Liberal government in 2004 to help Ford retool the plant so it could produce three different vehicles instead of just one thereby allowing it to respond to consumer demand. "We knew that without this flexible platform the plant was at risk," said Brown. "You have to be ahead of the curve and I would say the MPs (on the auto caucus) kept the Liberal government ahead of what was coming." Oakville Conservative candidate Terence Young noted that the Conservative government has taken steps to help the auto industry, including the lowering of the GST by two per cent, which made the average car $600 cheaper and lowered the cost of fuel. Young noted the Conservatives are currently trying to fight off another blow to the auto industry in the form of Stephane Dion's carbon tax, which Young said would drive up the cost of fuel and everything else. Young cited the Conservative government's $80 million investment in the Windsor Ford engine plant and an agreement with General Motors to develop a new hybrid car, which would be manufactured in Ottawa. "I have been pushing and will continue to push as MP to have a hybrid car built right here in Oakville," he said. "They've just had to close down a shift because the large vehicles are not selling as much." Oakville's NDP candidate Michelle Bilek puts the blame for Canada's auto sector woes on globalization and free trade. "We wouldn't have this problem if we stayed local, stayed Canadian and supported Canadian industry and we put money into Canadian industry instead of letting foreign investors come into our country and take over our industry," she said. "This is a free trade issue and I think if we changed the North American Free Trade Act, it would improve the situation for workers in Canada." Bilek also called for a movement towards a green economy that would see the Canadian government invest heavily in environmentally-friendly industries. Oakville Green Party candidate Marion Schaffer, who has since been succeeded by Blake Poland, noted that those in charge of Ford need to be more forward thinking with the type of cars they make. "People need vehicles, but right now some of the vehicles that are being produced are the wrong kind that people no longer want to buy," she said. "Fewer people are going to buy SUVs now, that's a fact, and more people are getting a more fuel-efficient car." In the Halton riding, Liberal MP Garth Turner said the solution lies in partnerships between the car companies and government. "The time has passed when governments could just hand out grants for expansion," he said. "In contrast, this is the time for government to partner in developing new technologies and good, green jobs. Ford should be building the cars people want -- more hybrids and electric vehicles -- and Ottawa should be helping make that happen." Turner said a Liberal government would create a $1 billion green technology fund to help companies like Ford build next generation vehicles. The fund would also provide the consumer with assistance in buying these hybrid and alternate energy cars. Halton Conservative candidate Lisa Raitt believes the correct handling of this issue can only be found through strong leadership, for which you have to look to the Conservative Party. "What you hear from the Prime Minister is that in a time of worldwide economic uncertainty, what you have to have is a strong hand, good leadership and people who are going to act decisively and that's why the Conservatives are the best people to deal with issues like that," she said. "If the people of Halton elect me, I'll be in Ottawa making sure that when decisions are being made, Halton's needs will be taken into consideration." Halton NDP candidate Robert Wagner pointed to party leader Jack Layton's $8 billion job creation plan as a possible solution to the auto industry's problems. "It has $4 billion earmarked for the auto industry to produce lowemission vehicles," said Wagner. "So, about half of the money that he plans to spend over four years would be going to the retooling of the auto industry and then, for people who are still lost in the shuffle, about $3 billion of the $8 billion would go towards the retraining of workers and the creating of a green collar job industry. A little less than a billion would go towards research and development tax credits." Halton Green Party candidate Amy Collard agreed with colleague Marion Schaffer that Ford needs to change its ways and the government needs to help it. "We're not seeing Toyota laying off people, and I believe that Ford needs to be presenting more and more alternatives to buyers. We need to get off the gas-burning cars so that they [Ford] can be more competitive in the marketplace and support our local economy," she said. "The Green Party supports investment and tax incentives into the creation of green-collar jobs." While many of the candidates believe the solution to the problem lies in Ford producing different vehicles, for the moment the auto giant seems to be sticking with crossovers, which are said to combine the space of an SUV with the handling and fuel efficiency of a car. Ford is scheduled to begin production of the Lincoln MKT, a luxury crossover sedan, at some point in the 2009 calendar year. END OF SEASON SALE Additional 15% Off Most Seasonal Items already below retail price Valid until September 20, 2008 PLUM fresh innovative YOUR CORPORATE CATERING SPECIALISTS We believe that our combination of fresh seasonal ingredients, culinary expertise, caring service, experience and event planning will take your event from ordinary to extraordinary. As one of Oakville's leading caterers, we offer catering for: · corporate events · corporate luncheons · private parties · ground breaking · grand openings CHANGE isAccents GOOD Seasonal Home 1410 Speers Road (between 3rd Line & 4th Line on the South side) 905-844-7110 467 Speers Road Unit #15, Oakville www.plumcatering.ca info@plumcatering.ca 321 Cornwall Road, Olde Oakville Market Place (next to Whole Foods) 905.815.8777 OAKVILLE WATERLOO 905-827-9337