MP Garth Turner to host Queensville public meeting

Voters, taxpayers and constituents of York - Simcoe will get a chance May 23 to send a message directly to Parliament when outspoken MP Garth Turner hosts a town hall meeting in Queensville.

While residents will be free to raise any topics they wish, the recent Conservative government decision to tax income trusts, which Turner has maintained breaks a specific promise by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, is expected to spark a hot debate.

The move on the part of the government is believed to have cost more than a million investors, most of them seniors, more than $25 billion in lost retirement savings, according to a statement issued by Turner. That is the greatest private loss ever to result directly from one government action, and came as a shock to voters after Harper promised repeatedly in the last election campaign that he would never impose such a tax.

Turner, MP for Halton, was ousted from the Conservative caucus in Ottawa by Harper last fall for his opposition to several government positions. He has tried to be a champion of jilted investors, and plans to bring an action plan to the meeting for those anxious to know what their alternatives are. Turner joined the federal Liberal caucus in February, after sitting as an independent MP for four months.

"I have heard from many people in York - Simcoe very unhappy that their MP, Peter Van Loan, has refused to call such a meeting," Turner commented. "Peter seems only too happy to hide in Ottawa these days where Mr. Harper has rewarded him with a cushy new job, salary increase, car and driver. It's a shame how the trappings of power can make a good MP forget who sent him down there."

Turner added Van Loan and Harper need to explain to area residents not only why income trusts were taxed, but also why so many Canadian companies have recently been purchased by foreign firms as a result. Turner, a noted personal finance author before going to Parliament, said he is also concerned about the government's move to raise income tax and bring in an inflationary budget with record spending that could sell increase loan and mortgage rates later this year.

The Queensville meeting is being sponsored by the Canadian Association of Income Trust Investors, a non-partisan, national group representing the interests of individual citizens. It is open to everyone and is free of charge.

The meeting will take place at Queensville Community Centre, 1590 Queensville Sideroad. It will start at 7 p.m.

For more information, contact Esther Shaye at (905) 693-0166.