My answers to the London Labour Council Questionnaire: Name: Daniel O’Neail Position: City Councillor (Ward1): Contact Information Email:London4oneail@gmail Phone: 519-777-1027 Address: 1065 Florence St London On N5W2M7 1.What is your vision for the City of London? Quite simply to see London grow as a City. Far to long have we had stagnant councils that behave as if London was a small town or village, focusing on minutia and micromanaging minor decisions while larger more important issues are not provided the attention they require. Weeks spent on issues such as food trucks and chicken coops (Still without resolution, just kicked further down the road for more meetings and grandstanding, while issues such as infrastructure, roads, transit and employment strategy are not fully examined or addressed. Many decisions that come out of this City Hall to date are short term, quick fix bandage policies that have little or no vision past the next election. I intend to bring a longer view to our City Council. Long term plans and scheduling to build overpasses along our express lanes. Transit, that addresses the needs of a 24 hour City, and a tax break that encourages growth within the City rather then increased taxation by servicing areas outside the growth boundary for redundant big box shopping centers. London is a City. One of the largest in Canada, and needs to be led from that view point. 2. If elected, what are your priorities for our community? My main priorities are: Accountability- Enacting rules and laws that would, under extreme circumstances, provide a method to censure or remove council members in breach of laws, conflict, or wildly inappropriate behaviour. We can no longer I regret to say, count on elected members to behave in a manner befitting the position to which they have been elected. A method must be put in place that would allow for the removal of destructive parties. Transit- We need an effective City wide transit system that addresses the needs of the London working class. Lack of service in the late evening, early morning, weekends, is adversely affecting our working class citizens. Many are unable to meet the expectations of employers due to a lack of reliable transportation. Include the fact that there is almost no public transit to our industrial areas and you can understand why some companies are having difficulty staffing and why our unemployment is still unacceptably high. Jobs- London is perfectly situated to be a business hub. Our proximity to Toronto, Windsor, Sarnia as well as nearby American markets should be exploited, We have an excellent rail system as well as high speed highways to all those communities and a willing able well trained work force available due to the several higher education facilities within our community. I intend to host a town hall meeting in September to address the job issue. I will be inviting London’s unemployed to speak to the candidates and local business leaders on the challenges they face in finding gainful employment. I would then expect Council and the Business community could begin to address those key concerns in a productive and timely manner. Growth- London needs to address growth in both our residential and business markets. In short Density, Density, Density! I intend to propose tax breaks (with sunset clauses) to encourage development within our core areas, both for business and residential development in an effort to guide development along a long term growth plan rather then the jigsaw puzzle construction that we see today. The City- We need to begin to plan for the next 30-50 years and start making the decisions now that will guide the future of London. Waste Management is going to be unmanageable within 5-10 years yet we are not looking aggressively for alternatives, Green bin, sorting centers, downtown recycling, new landfill. All need to be addressed now. Level crossings on major arterial roads, undeveloped riverfront, and industrial centers that will continue to attract people and business to London, not just this year, but for years to come need to be planned and the beginning steps taken to complete major project over a long term to prevent undue sticker shock hardship to our taxpayers. 3. How do you view the role of public services in our community? Where do you stand on contracting out and privatization of public services? In addition to your position on these matters, please comment specifically on the Canada European Union Trade Agreement and the City of London’s resolution to be excluded from it. As a former Green, I can assure you I am in full support of ‘buy local’ Investing in locally run, owned and supplied businesses has a multiplicity of benefits to the community. Every dollar spent locally is reinvested into the community several times and increases the worth and value of that investment. I was thrilled to hear we rejected CETA as it read to me as an unbalanced agreement that would have caused undue hardship to London businesses and our working community. I can not imagine what would have happened to London’s Employment numbers if this had been in place over the last few years. 4. What would you do to promote local services and good jobs in our community? London needs to promote the excellent opportunities that are available here. In conjunction with Western, Fanshawe and other educational institutes we can promote employability. With local business and community we can co-venture marketing London as the community to live work and play in. Cooperative ventures with invested interests is the best way to promote the opportunities London presents to the nation and the world. 5. What would you do to promote a more respectful climate at City Hall? I addressed this in my Accountability statement above 6. How will you communicate regularly with the London and District Labour Council, if elected? Planned regular meetings between Labour Council and City Council, but I have always worked with an open door policy and would expect that the Labour Council is aware they can address concerns to me directly at any time. Labour must be included in almost all business related initiatives within the community and their input would be welcome prior to any final decision being made.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Aug 2014 17:13:50 +0000
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