Editorials - Dec. 6, 2024

A recent editorial from The Sudbury Star seemed like it could have been written in any independent newspaper across the province, with just a few place names changed. The column was written as a letter to the city of Sudbury from a resident of Levack, a small community near Sudbury that had been part of the amalgamation into the united city of Greater Sudbury. In her letter, she laments the relationship that she says has become “a one-sided relationship with us begging for crumbs”. 

 

The situations that she goes on to describe have an eerily familiar ring to them - the municipal building and garage in her community have been sold off, tennis courts given away, equipment moved to Sudbury as back-ups, and closing the arena is being looked at as a possible “cost-saving”.

 

Amalgamation has been a nearly 25-year experiment that has not gone well. Communities within a community are pitted against each other for shrinking resources. Assets that were once the pride of towns and villages, like arenas and sports fields, are now considered liabilities. Citizens from smaller towns are expected to drive to the larger centre to access services. As this writer points out, “the road is much shorter for us to travel to Sudbury than it is for them to travel to us”.

 

Will amalgamation ultimately fail, or will councils and municipalities finally figure out how to divide up the pie fairly? – DS

A whole host of municipal politicians, many of whom call Huron County home and revel in the small square of power they maintain over whether to fly certain flags, should have had their cages rattled (and lawyers on standby) after the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal ordered that $15,000 be paid to Borderlane Pride after Emo Township Council refused to proclaim Pride Month back in 2020. The township itself will pay $10,000, while Emo Mayor Harold McQuaker will pay $5,000. 

 

The decision takes into account some of the language used during the discussion that ended with council deciding not to fly the Pride flag in 2020. The Tribunal found that Borderland Pride was discriminated against by council. In addition, McQuaker and Emo’s CAO must complete a “Human Rights 101” training course within 30 days.

 

“We didn’t pursue this because of the money,” said Doug Judson, a lawyer on Borderland Pride’s Board of Directors. “We pursued it because we were treated in a discriminatory fashion by a municipal government, and municipalities have obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code not to discriminate in the provision of service.”

 

Simply being a good person may not be motivation enough for some to recognize everyone’s right to feel welcome in their own community, so perhaps the threat of fines may be more persuasive. The reckoning against Emo Township should give many municipalities pause and lead councillors to ask themselves if they’re serving their residents or discriminating against them when they make a decision and why. And if your personal beliefs, regardless of the reasons, openly discriminate and you use them to make decisions as an elected official, it’s clear that you’re not serving your community - you’re serving yourself. – SL 

Ontario’s rural hospitals are in crisis, and Premier Doug Ford must be held accountable. Under his leadership, emergency rooms (ERs) across the province have faced record-breaking closures, creating dangerous barriers to healthcare access. According to a CBC analysis, one in five Ontario hospitals with ERs or urgent care centres has experienced closures since 2022, with 2024 on track to be the worst year yet.

 

Hospitals in Clinton, Wingham and Seaforth are among those most affected, with ERs regularly closed during critical hours. These closures stem from a chronic nursing shortage - a problem that Ford’s administration has only exacerbated. Despite announcing funding and stopgap measures, the situation continues to deteriorate. The reliance on costly agency nurses, a symptom of systemic neglect, is bleeding rural hospitals dry while doing little to ensure sustainable staffing solutions.

 

The numbers don’t lie. Before 2019, ER closures were “very rare,” according to Ontario’s Auditor General. Today, they have become alarmingly common, with rural communities bearing the brunt of the fallout. This abject failure is a direct result of Ford’s destructive policies, including years of underfunding, neglect of healthcare worker retention and a dismissive attitude toward public health crises.

 

Ford’s government claims closures have decreased, yet the majority of interruptions are now scheduled reductions to daytime-only hours, effectively stripping ERs of their core function as 24/7 access points. These closures are not a solution; they are a surrender.

 

Ontarians cannot afford another term under Ford. The consequences of this mismanagement are felt every day by patients in rural areas forced to delay or forgo emergency care. It is time to end this downward spiral and elect leaders who will prioritize healthcare over spin. Ontario’s hospitals, and the communities they serve, deserve no less. – SBS