The Liberals’ island airport decision
Re What’s the rush? Editorial Nov. 15 So, the Liberal honeymoon ends quickly, especially for Transport Minister Marc Garneau. After vowing to make fact-based decisions, an obvious political decision is made concerning Toronto’s island airport. Why wait for the upcoming fact-filled reports if you’re going to make a political decision? (It would have been “political” to have at least waited for the reports.)
It’s equally disconcerting that apparently one man, Toronto Liberal MP Adam Vaughan, can be instrumental in decisions like these. I’m sure that more than Porter’s Robert DeLuce, Bombardier and myself are extremely disappointed. Not a good start. Hal Finlayson, London, Ont.
I am not a Liberal, but as a Torontonian, I want to thank Marc Garneau for stopping the jets coming and going at the Island airport. I can talk about growing up and living in downtown Toronto, seeing the airport being built, remembering where poor working-class kids went every summer to get out of the city. I can talk about that. I can’t speak for the birds or the fish. Garneau did. Honey Novick, Toronto
Thanks to Marc Garneau, the Trudeau cabinet’s first flip-flop, at blistering speed, sets a frightening new precedent for backtracking. Why did Garneau, in a few short hours and in the absence of factual evidence, reverse himself and say no to jets at Billy Bishop?
Why did he dismissively flush the $4 million spent on studies now nearing completion to determine those facts and permit an evidence based decision? One way or the other.
What’s in that evidence that so troubles Mr. Vaughan and Mr. Garneau? Too bad we may never know. W.J. Hogle, Campbellford
I am shocked and appalled at your snarly editorial suggesting our transport minister has “certainly not (undertaken) a laborious study of the facts” of the now-thoroughly discredited and unquestionably harmful airport expansion proposals. Lorraine Tinsley, Toronto
Marc Garneau is still orbiting the Earth. In the Star’s mania to get rid of Stephen Harper, you have conveniently overlooked a century of Liberal broken promises. They will say anything to attain and retain power. Pat Biondi, Montreal
So, once again, a matter that is of concern only to Toronto is being decided for us by others. It joins a long list of issues, such as parking fines, for which the city must get approval from a higher level of government. How can Toronto, for better or for worse, plan its destiny when it’s not allowed to make its own decisions? Ronald Weir, Thornhill
Marc Garneau, my hero again. The world cries for water, even digging it out of rocks. Mayor John Tory and DeLuce want to put more rocks in our water and cover it with tar for the sake of the Bay Street Boys and the privileged few. We can’t let this happen. Mary Dean Braaten, Toronto