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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, N ov em be r 15 ,2 01 8 | 8 ABOUT US This newspaper, 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 family of newspapers is comprised f of more than 80 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the news- paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. 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OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM EDITORIAL Say one thing for Conservative MP Tony Clement: When he finally got around to announcing the unholy mess he had gotten himself into, he didn't pull any punches. Recently, Clement told the Prime Minister's Office heRecently, Clement told the Prime Minister's Office heR had repeatedly sent sexts, including images and video, to someone he met on the internet, who he thought was a consenting adult female. Turns out the consenting adult was actually an internet extortionist who was trying to blackmail Clement - seeking $75,000 in exchange for not making the intimate images of Clement public. When he finally got around to admitting his really fool- ish mistake he confessed everything. He resigned from the Conservative shadow cabinet and then from Andrew Scheer's caucus. Clement's very public undoing was complete and humil- iating and must have been awful for his family. He is appar- ently "seeking treatment." But his mistakes were just that. He is infinitely human and fallible, like most of us. At least he didn't try to obfuscate and prevaricate. Doug Ford can- not make the same claim. When Ford first heard that his senior minister and ally Jim Wilson was in serious trouble, the premier's brain trust issued a terse press statement. "The Honourable Jim Wilson has resigned as Minister of Economic Develop-Wilson has resigned as Minister of Economic Develop-W ment, Job Creation, and Trade, effective immediately. Wilson will also be resigning from the Progressive Conser-Wilson will also be resigning from the Progressive Conser-W vative caucus to seek treatment for addiction issues." Immediately, red flags went up in newsrooms across the province. Why would a senior minister resign from caucus to get addiction help? It's an occupational hazard in poli- tics, hardly a reason for ending your career. With every media bloodhound on full alert and govern-With every media bloodhound on full alert and govern-W ment sources in full leak mode, it soon became apparent there was much more going on. Wilson was accused of sexually inappropriate behaviour toward political staff. Even when that was reported in numerous media sources, the Ford brain trust wouldn't comment. And so the story festered. festered. f Finally, Ford cabinet minister Lisa MacLeod admitted to reporters the real reasons behind Wilson's flame-out. Even after that, the premier himself would not comment. Finally, Ford acknowledged he didn't tell the whole truth, but says he did so to protect the identity of the alleged vic- tims. What Ford and his advisers did was give this story long, strong legs. They could have simply told the truth from the beginning and chances are it would have died a natural death, as the Tony Clement story probably will. Now that we know Ford didn't tell the truth from the outset, it's fair to wonder what else he isn't saying. A top aide, Andrew Kimber, resigned at the same time as Wilson, facing the same sort of allegations. And guess what? Kimber's wife was chief of staff to Wilson. The official line is all this is just a coincidence. Then again, the official line would still be "addiction treatment" only if not for those media bloodhounds. The moral of the story, even though it's unlikely Ford and friends will get it, is this. Clement made terrible mis- takes. He admitted everything. Jim Wilson made terrible mistakes. His proxy, Doug Ford, tried to mislead Ontarians about the extent of those mistakes and was caught red handed. Whose credibility sustained more damage? A TALE OF THREE TORIES: CLEMENT, WILSON AND FORD The time to act on cli- mate change is now. Scien- tists have repeatedly warned about the conse- quences of rising global temperatures due to car- bon pollution. As former U.S. president Barack Obama said, "we are the first generation to feel thefirst generation to feel thef impact of climate change, and the last generation that can do something about it." All provinces were giv- en the opportunity to cre- ate their own plan for re- ducing carbon pollution. Ontario implemented its plan in 2017, but this was cancelled recently by the Doug Ford government. On Jan. 1, 2019, the federal government is taking ac- tion to ensure that pollut- ing is no longer free in any province. Our government's plan to make polluters pay pro- vides incentives for Cana- dians to reduce their car- bon emissions and pursue cleaner alternatives. Since announcing our plan, experts from the Pembina Institute, Toron- to Region Board of Trade, Greenpeace Canada, Cli- mate Action Network Can- ada and others have ex- pressed their support. De- spite these accolades, mis- information is being spread about this plan. I would like to correct some of those myths. Our federal govern- ment is transparent about the plan's costs and reve- nues. All revenue generat- ed in Ontario will be re- turned to Ontario, with 90 per cent going directly to families and 10 per cent to-families and 10 per cent to-f ward helping smaller businesses, schools, hos- pitals, and communities improve their energy effi- ciency. This plan will signifi- cantly reduce Canada's carbon emissions. By 2022, our plan will cut carbon pollution by 50 to 60 mil- lion tonnes - equivalent to the pollution that 30-35 coal-fired power plants would emit. To put this re- duction in perspective, consider that since the last of southern Ontario's three coal-fired plants was closed in 2012, our smog advisory days have dropped from 17 to zero. On Jan. 1, we can start turning the tide on carbon pollution in Canada. In- stead of paying to recover from catastrophic forestfrom catastrophic forestf fires, floods and storms,fires, floods and storms,f let's invest in new technol- ogies that will result in a healthier and safer envi- ronment. We know how to fix this problem. Now isfix this problem. Now isf the time to act. John Oliver, member of Parliament, writes month- ly about federal issues impacting the Oakville riding. Visit John's web- site at johnoliver.mp or contact him at John.Oli- ver@parl.gc.ca. IT'S UP TO US TO STOP CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENTISTS HAVE REPEATEDLY WARNED OF CONSEQUENCES, WRITES JOHN OLIVER JOHN OLIVER Column