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On Liberals Working Together for Change

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The Ontario NDPs Andrea Horwath is taking aim at the Liberals musings about selling off pieces of provincial Crown corporations, as the leader seeks to shore up support in her party ahead of a provincial council meeting and upcoming leadership review.

On Wednesday, Ms. Horwath said public agencies should remain completely owned by the government and their major assets, such as power stations and nuclear reactors, should not be sold to private companies.

We should keep OPG [Ontario Power Generation], Hydro One and the LCBO in public hands where they can benefit all of us, not just the well-connected, Ms. Horwath said at Queens Park. The fact is when Ontarians own something, we can make sure that it works for us, that it works in our best interests.

The governing Liberals have appointed Ed Clark, chief executive officer of the TD Bank, to lead a panel to look at the provinces assets and make suggestions on what can be sold. The government has not ruled anything out, including selling stakes in Crown corporations to pension funds, or offloading hydro infrastructure to the private sector.

The Liberals contend that they can find more money in the corporations to help fund highways and public transit.

Andrea Horwath is being irresponsible by saying the government should never review assets, and that it should never look at maximizing the benefit for the people of Ontario, Infrastructure Minister Brad Duguid said in a statement. Were not going to make that mistake.

The NDP argues that offering any stake to the private sector would diminish the dividends some of these Crown corporations pay annually into the public purse.

Ms. Horwath came under fire from within her party for running on a populist platform in the June election and avoiding the sort of ambitious, social justice-oriented policies the NDP has traditionally embraced. Dissent has been strongest in Toronto, where the party lost three seats to the Liberals, who campaigned on public transit and a provincial pension plan.

On Wednesday, Ms. Horwath said she understood that anger and would make a concerted effort to emphasize the kinds of issues that would appeal to Toronto voters, including income inequality, homelessness, public transit and health care. All of those things are core NDP values and what I need to do is make sure that Im connecting with folks in Toronto, and Im ensuring that those values are reflected, she said.

The NDP Leader faces her first test this weekend when the partys provincial council will debate rules that allow the partys leadership to fill unused delegate slots at its November convention a policy that some fear Ms. Horwaths loyalists could use to get more of their camp into the convention and the leadership vote.

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Ontario NDPs Horwath says Liberals shouldnt sell off major public assets

Scary pictures of guns liberals will need to ban
4-minute version of the 16-minute video which has 5800+ views. Combines audio from Vicki McKenna show and photos from Sara Conrad. More info at Badger Pundit blog: http://thebadger14.wordpress.com...

By: Badger Pundit

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Scary pictures of guns liberals will need to ban - Video

Investments, not individuals, paid the bills in Canberra's two major political parties over the past five years, making the ACT Greens the only party funded primarily by people power.

Analysis by Fairfax Media of all reported payments made to Canberra's three major political parties between 2009-2014 shows how heavily Labor and the Liberals rely on income from business investments.

In the past five years Labor has received twice as much money from Canberra Labor clubs and their investment trust, the 1973 Foundation, as all other payments combined.

Since 2009, they have received about $3.1 million from their associated entities and investments, compared to $1.4 million from businesses, developers, individuals and unions, among others.

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Similarly in the ACT Liberal Party about $1.2 million has come from their property investments between 2009-2014, more than the $1.17 million from all other sources.

The ACT Greens were funded primarily by the federal branch of their own party, to the tune of $371,081, as well as accumulating $315,612 from individual donations and receipts, more than any other Canberra party.

Contributions from wealthy individuals made up almost half of all ACT Greens donations over the past five years.

The analysis examined all declared private contributions, both donations and receipts, above $1000 between the 2009-10 and 2013-14 financial years.

It did not include public funding provided by ACT elections or the Australian Electoral Commission.

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Where ACT Labor, the Canberra Liberals and Greens get their cash

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Previously suppressed emails before a corruption inquiry raise concerns over the access donors have to senior politicians, reports Kate McClymont.

Labor has accused the federal government of taking "cash for questions" after it was revealed that Tony Abbott's chief of staff, Peta Credlin, planned to use Parliament to showcase the case of a prominent Liberal Party donor against the carbon tax.

Emails between Ms Credlin and the former chief fund-raiser of the NSW Liberal Party were suppressed last week by the Independent Commission Against Corruption after lawyers acting for Liberal senator Arthur Sinodinos said they could be subject to parliamentary privilege.

Peta Credlin, chief of staff to Prime Minister Tony Abbott. Photo: Alex Ellinghausen

But the suppression order was lifted on Monday after the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Bronwyn Bishop, announced that no claim for privilege would be made after Ms Credlin indicated she had no objection to the emails being made public.

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The emails reveal that, in March 2011, while the Coalition was in opposition, Ms Credlin used a major donor to the Liberal Party, Brickworks, as part of Tony Abbott's campaign against the carbon tax.

Ms Credlin is married to BrianLoughnane, the party's federal director. Brickworks was one of the largest corporate donors to the Liberal Party, giving $384,000 in a nine-month period from July 2010 to April 2011. As well as its brand Austral Bricks, Brickworks also lists property development as a core business.

Paul Nicolaou, right, arrives at ICAC. Photo: Daniel Munoz

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