The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
From the coalition controversy to near-constant election speculation, Niki Ashton's first year in parliament has been anything but ordinary. Over the weekend, The Reminder sat down with the Churchill Riding MP for an in-depth one-on-one interview. * * * REMINDER: What does Flin Flon need the most right now? ASHTON: For me, it's important to hear from people in Flin Flon what they feel they need most. Certainly I think in the big sense, what a lot of people in Flin Flon ask for...is a voice, a voice for the specific issues that Flin Flon is facing and a voice that is going to fight for those issues. I know two areas, for example, that Flin Flon residents have (brought) to my attention more specifically are the need for support for recreation and certainly...a (recreational) complex, and supporting that need for people of all ages in the community. Also, housing is an issue for seniors. Advances have been made, but clearly there is more of a need in that area. But there's more general concerns; certainly support in terms of the direction that industry is taking, not just here in Flin Flon, but in our whole region, and I'd say also, education and training issues are also issues. And of course another big one is health and the lack of doctors, which many of us in the North face. I don't have a doctor, like many northerners don't as well. And certainly looking out for national leadership in those areas (is needed). Obviously a number of governments Ð municipal, provincial, federal Ð have a role to play, and for me it's very important and it continues to be very important to work so that Flin Flon has a voice when it comes to the specific issues, but also for some of the realities and the challenges we face as a region. REMINDER: We saw automakers get bailed out by government and some residents wondered why there was no talk of a bailout to save the HBMS smelter. Your thoughts? ASHTON: Definitely it is a real concern given the employment that comes through the smelter and HudBay in general, in Flin Flon. So certainly I recognize, coming from a mining town myself, I know how important it is to work to make sure that these jobs are available. I mean, some of these decisions are led obviously by industry. Certainly I believe government has a role to play to support the community. Now, if some decisions are made that the government doesn't have any control (over), that is a bit different. But I believe the federal government should be looking at the needs of industries in the sense that they should be looking out for supporting communities. So it's making sure that people aren't losing their jobs or that there are jobs to go to, these kinds of solutions. Obviously this has been a difficult year for Canadians all across the country. We've seen some things that we haven't ever seen before and we'll have to continue working, in the case of Flin Flon, to see what solutions can be found, where government can play a role. And certainly the federal government hasn't been as proactive as it should be in terms of supporting communities, despite some of the things we've heard in other areas of the country. They haven't been there for forestry, they haven't really been there for mining, and even in many areas of manufacturing, some of the support has been really band-aid; it hasn't been dealing with some of the issues of sustainability, making sure that we've got good jobs for people in our regions. See 'Talk' on pg. Continued from pg. REMINDER: Were there any talks that you're aware of where HudBay Minerals and the governments sat down and looked at, "Can we avert the smelter closure?" ASHTON: For some time there was the talk of HudBay wanting to close the smelter, so I guess that's always been there. I'm aware of the talks around seeing what can be done for people that would lose those jobs in the smelter. So I'm aware of those talks, perhaps not the initial ones dealing with the smelter itself. But generally, of course, obviously there's the general discussions in terms of (federal) regulation and those things that are seen as being part of the equation as to why HudBay is taking the decision it is, although it's a decision that I think involves many factors, not just environmental regulation, as we all know. REMINDER: There are many First Nations in your riding, and we all know what the conditions are often like in those communities. What do you think the solution is? Is it more money? ASHTON: I think many of us in the North recognize that all of our communities have a different experience. And certainly it's communities themselves that know what they need. And First Nations communities, like many of our northern communities, while there are similar challenges, each of them...(is) facing some particular issues or challenges as well. And I think what's really important at the national level is to make sure that we're listening to First Nations, and that's not happening right now. I'm involved, for example, with...opposing the current review being done by the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs on First Nations post-secondary funding. And the reason is because they're not consulting with First Nations. They've had a few symbolic meetings and are trying to pass that off as some sort of consultation when it's not. So the need to consult with First Nations is written in law, but the federal government does not have a history of respecting that in many cases, and if we're going to work together to make change in these communities, we have to take the time to listen to the specifics: What do people on the ground feel is needed? Certainly the government has a role to play, a responsibility, because of the treaties that were signed with First Nations in the areas of infrastructure and health. And those are certainly not being met in terms of the needs. Then we're also seeing changing needs. With global warming, we know that many communities in the North, communities like Pukatawagan, don't have all-weather roads and as the winter season becomes less and less, people are finding it more difficult to manage. So looking at some of the emerging needs as well is critical in addressing some of the serious living-standard challenges that are faced by many of the communities. So I think the approach needs to involve all of us. The living conditions that many First Nations people face are something that we all need to be part of working on. We know that here in the North, we have to work together to make sure our regions are represented, and we benefit from working together, whether it's in terms of business or community relations, so if...communities work as partners in dealing with some of these issues and giving profile to the challenges many First Nations face, I think we have a better chance of creating that change and making sure that the federal government is accountable in terms of the responsibilities that they have as well. REMINDER: You obviously believe in the NDP's ideas. Why do you feel the federal party can't win more seats? ASHTON: The 2008 election was quite historic for the NDP. It's the second highest number of seats we've ever gotten. I think one of the things that's a real success from that election was the extent to which we got representation in the North Ð northern Ontario, Northwest Territories, northern B.C. Some of those were re-elected members, some were newly elected. And I think that's something we're building on, that we're a voice for Canadians from coast to coast to coast (and) that we're also a very strong voice for Canadians like us, from northern regions, from regions that give a lot of wealth to much of Canada through the industries... We have communities with some real needs that need to be met. So we're building on that and certainly I've been part of doing some of the outreach work in other parts of our country saying, "This is the work we're doing now. Join us in adding to those voices." And the NDP has a very strong history, certainly provincially here and federally as well, of being that voice, and I know we're very hopeful as we move forward. And (we're) also looking at some of the issues that people are facing as a result of the recession, for example. A lot of people have been thinking twice about the need for government to show leadership in a number of areas. Certainly a lot of the initiatives we've been pushing for have been supported, (though) not entirely as we'd like, whether it's reforming pensions, Employment Insurance, areas around consumer protection. These were all issues where it's the NDP that's pushing parliament to take leadership. So we're going to continue doing that work and we're hopeful that more Canadians see us as a voice that will represent and will fight for them. REMINDER: Does having your father, Steve Ashton, in the provincial cabinet give you an advantage in your job? ASHTON: Well, having positive relationships with elected officials in our region is always important. For me it's important to work well with our municipal governments, our provincial MLAs, you know, my colleagues in the House as well. And certainly I'm excited to be able to work with my dad in his position as MLA, as I am to work with (Flin Flon MLA) Gerard Jennissen and our northern MLAs... And I think we're all fortunate to have MLAs that are part of the provincial government and that work hard to respond to our priorities, make our priorities happen, and for me...obviously I can contact him very easily given the fact that he is my dad. But for me it is very important to make sure that I have that open communication and that approach to working together with all of our leaders. (The second part of this interview will appear Friday).
