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Gladu hails federal funding for Chris Hadfield Airport

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It’s been an eventful past few weeks as MP. I was excited to join with leading local officials in welcoming federal funding for the Sarnia Chris Hadfield Airport, under the Canada’s Airports Capital Assistance Program (ACAP.) The total funding of $583,665 will go towards replacing asphalt on the Taxiway and portion of the main apron, as well as upgrading Airport guidance signs.

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I was also very pleased with the attendance at the various public skating events I hosted across Sarnia-Lambton over the March Break. I love meeting with constituents, and (as expected) many of you had the opportunity to directly raise your concerns with me about the alleged corruption of the Liberal government’s actions on different files.

Currently, there are serious allegations of interference in criminal prosecutions involving SNC Lavalin, as well as interference in the federal trial of the Navy’s Vice Admiral Mark Norman (which involves leaked information relating to naval procurement projects worth billions of dollars being given to a favoured shipyard in Quebec instead of the initially tendered shipbuilder.) This is at the heart of the principle that the rule of law must be upheld, and there should not be a different set of rules for those in power.

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The Prime Minister refuses to answer specific questions on either of these matters, and the Liberal majority on the Justice committee continue to refuse to call all witnesses in the SNC affair, which is not open nor transparent.

With so many of the Liberal campaign promises broken (electoral reform, modest government spending, budget balanced within the mandate, home mail delivery restored, no use of omnibus bills, restoration of lifelong pensions for veterans… the list goes on) – the promise trackers show that only about a third of what Justin Trudeau promised has been delivered.

That said – I myself made some very serious promises when I initially ran to become your MP, and I would suggest that I have been able to deliver most of what I told constituents would be priorities for me in my first term as an MP. In terms of what I have been able to help deliver for Sarnia-Lambton, it must be mentioned that the key to success has been strong cooperation with municipal, corporate and non-governmental organizations across our community.

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During the 42nd Parliament, close to $200 million in federal funding has been brought to our community to help support projects and proposals at Lambton College, our Bio Innovation Centre and affiliated facilities; the Nova Chemicals expansion; various infrastructure projects across City of Sarnia and Lambton County, accessibility, transportation, funding for mental health, jobs for youth and long-term care for our seniors.

Our unemployment rate has dropped from nine per cent to less than six per cent. Border crossing issues for boaters, citizens and transporters have been addressed.

The cooperative effort from leading officials and stakeholders across our community has been an amazing experience to be a part of, and I feel gives us a strong foundation to move forward on as we seek to finalize funding applications for key priorities remaining across Sarnia-Lambton.

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As we look ahead to outstanding needs, we have an issue of affordable housing, as well as more work to be done in the mental health and addictions arena. We need to continue to implement the plans to address our aging population, and the lack of affordability of life in general. We must continue to create jobs to retain our young people and increase our competitiveness with the completion of the Oversize Load Corridor, while always promoting lower taxes for both individuals and businesses.

I am pleased to announce that in April, in conjunction with the Sarnia-Lambton Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Chamber of Commerce and the Mental Health Commission of Canada, I will be hosting an event to address mental health issues and safety in the workplace. #338Conversations is an exciting and innovative event that I look forward to sharing more details with you about soon!

It remains an honor to serve the residents of Sarnia Lambton. If my staff or I can be of assistance, please call the office at 519-383-6600 or stop by (Finch at Wellington next to Brownstone’s.)

You can also email me at Marilyn.gladu@parl.gc.ca

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