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

w w w .in si de ha lto n. co m | O AK VI LL E BE AV ER | Th ur sd ay , J an ua ry 4 , 2 01 8 | 6 EDITORIAL | OPINION 2 0 1 8 : A m ost im portant political year The beginning of every new year brings with it the hope that no matter how good the old year was, the next one will be even better. Often this generalized sense of optimism lacks a clear plan or idea of how to bring it to fruition. However, 2018 will be different. Thanks to a 2014 decision by NDP leader Andrea Horwath to bring down the minority government of Premier Kathleen Wynne, Ontarians will get the chance to select both their pro­ vincial and municipal representatives within the same year. While it might be ideal to spread elections out over a more than a span of mere months, the closeness of the dates gives voters enormous power to reshape the provinces political landscape to their liking. Elections are the only time where the voice of the people is truly at full strength. Once elected, politicians can ignore the popular will for four straight years if they see ht. The only chance that citizens have to effectively hold them to account is through the ballot box. It may be fashionable to say that voting doesn't matter be­ cause all candidates are basically the same. It may give one a sense of tragic nobility to refuse to vote based on the idea that since one's preferred candidate seems to have little chance of victory that the system is rigged. However, anyone with even the most rudimentary sense of recent political history knows that neither excuse holds much water. The challenge of 2018 is to become educated on the issues at both the provincial and local levels. Talk to candidates and party activists to see what their platforms are all about. Ask good, probing questions and don't accept wishy-washy or weasely answers. They are asking for your vote, it's your right to demand to know what they plan to do with it. Break out of the echo chamber by discussing the issues with as many different peo­ ple as possible. It will allow you to see where they're coming from and them to do the same. Minds may not be changed, but respect and empathy can be created from the effort. Most importantly, whatever you want to say be sure to say it by marking your X on election day, as once 2018 is over you won't get another chance at picking Ontario's provincial and civic leaders until 2022. And that's a long time to have to wait. ABOUT US The Oakville Beaver, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 100 community publications across Ontario. View our digital edition online at: Insidehalton.com under Print Editions found in the footer. •* metrolandmedia • * Connected to your community® The Oakville Beaver is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca nnc News Medio C anada J Medias d'lnfo C ana d aAocna Loc; Media iMSSSsaS. association ln s id e H a lto n .c o m fe.4 editoi@oakvillebeaver.com E @OakvilleBeav | | @oakvillebeaver f f i l insidehaiton.com MyView Investing in the priorities of Halton residents As we move into the new year, Hal- ton is already working to ensure the successful completion of our current Strategic Action Plan. These efforts are guided by our 2018 Budget and Business Plan, which details how we will deliver on resident priorities in the months to come. Our annual budget is an essential part of preserving our strong hnancial posi­ tion and AAA credit rating. It ensures our services provide top value for taxpayers while building a strong community, both throughout the year and for generations to come. The 2018 budget focuses on identifying savings and efhciencies by reorganizing re­ sources to priority areas. It also maintains service levels for regional programs and makes strategic investments in new and existing infrastructure to serve the growing population. As always, it is based on pru­ dent, forward-looking hnancial planning principles, and keeps property tax increases for Regional services at or below the rate of inflation. Gary Carr Halton Region Chair Key investments in the 2018 budget in­ clude the following increases: • $9.4 million to improve quality, acces- see Budget on p.11 Pud by Steve Nease CONTACT US WHO WE ARE The Oakville Beaver 5046 Mainway, Unit 2, Burlington ON L7L 5Z1 Phone 905-845-3824 / Fax 905-337-5568 Classified 1-800-263-6480 Digital/Flyers/Retail Advertising 289-293-0624 Real Estate/Homefinder.ca Advertising - Suzanne Trickey / 289-293-0677 / strickey@oakvillebeaver.com Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 200 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please call 1-866-838-8960 or email Customerservice@metroland.com Vice-President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Neil Oliver Regional General Manager Kelly Montague kmontague@metroland.com / 289-293-0614 Advertising Director Daniel Baird / dbaird@metroland.com / 289-293-0624 Managing Editor Angela Blackburn / ablackbum@oakvillebeaver.com / 289-293-0617 Director of Distribution Charlene Hall / chall@metroland.com / 905-631-6095 http://www.insidehalton.com http://www.mediacouncil.ca mailto:editoi@oakvillebeaver.com mailto:strickey@oakvillebeaver.com mailto:ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com mailto:Customerservice@metroland.com mailto:kmontague@metroland.com mailto:dbaird@metroland.com mailto:ablackbum@oakvillebeaver.com mailto:chall@metroland.com EDITORIAL | OPINION 2018: A most important political year ABOUT US •* metrolandmedia nnc lnsideHalton.com MyView Gary Carr see Budget on p.11 by Steve Nease CONTACT US WHO WE ARE The Oakville Beaver Letters to the editor Delivery Vice-President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Advertising Director Managing Editor Director of Distribution