Editor, The Record:
Re: Basic respect abandoned at council, Nov. 29 edition.
Paul Horn and others have criticized this council for not expanding the fire department.
He omitted the salient fact that he was a member of the former council that had increased taxes and spending by about 65 per cent over the previous six years, yet even his tax-and-spend council dropped further expansion of the fire department from its budget, presumably because they felt it was unjustified.
He also omitted the facts that there has been no upsurge in fire risks, and that this was not an issue in the last election apart from the explicit position of the CRMG team that expansion of the fire department was unjustified, and incompatible with the primary CRMG commitment to hold the line on taxes and spending.
Life is about choices. And prudence is about finding the right balance between what we want, what we actually need, and what we can afford.
Respect for democracy begins with accepting the decisions of the electorate, and with the public understanding that those officials elected should then be expected to fulfill their election promises and be held accountable to do so, unless compelling new reasons emerge that justify a different course.
Democracy provides Horn and the fire department expansionistas with an opportunity to change course if they achieve majority support in the 2014 election. But the reality is that the 2011 election produced an historic mandate for the CRMG team and its agenda, and this council is committed to fulfilling its promises.
Jeff Jewell
Councillor