Issues

In September of 2007 I sent the document linked below. I wanted to be in touch about a touching family reunification story in Hamilton East-Stoney Creek as well as share some information about the gap between corporate profits and wages.

TIME FOR DNA BANK AND MISSING PERSONS INDEX
Marston joins Mason family in launching a petition to establish National DNA Bank and MPI

Hamilton – Wayne Marston, MP (Hamilton East – Stoney Creek) was joined by the family of Billy Mason who disappeared last February, to launch a petition campaign calling on the Harper Government to establish a National DNA Bank and National Missing Persons Index.

“No one should have to rely on luck to find their loved one, but right now the lack of federal leadership on creating a national DNA bank and a national missing persons leaves an inadequate, patchwork process in place.” Mr. Marston added: “Right now in Canada, if human remains are found there is no simple way to compare that DNA to the DNA of missing persons right across this country. The families and friends of missing persons are asking this Government to make that possible.”

The mother of Billy Mason, a resident of Hamilton East – Stoney Creek who disappeared in February of 2006 spoke about the petition campaign.

“I was shocked when I learnt that there is no way to capture and compare my sons DNA to the items recently found that I believe are his or to others that I don’t even know about that might be helpful.” Said Mrs. Dixon, she added: “This petition is just another step that I am taking to find my son and get governments at all levels to co-operate and give law enforcement officials the tools they need to help families like mine find our loved ones.”

In an Open Letter to the Federal Ministers of Justice and Public Safety, Ministers Nicholson and Day, the Wayne Marston also urged the Harper Government to act now to implement the legislation required to create national systems for cross-referencing human remains to the DNA of missing persons.

“There have been public consultations. There is a Federal-Provincial-Territorial Working Group of Justice Ministers examining this issue. It is time to act and put the legislation in place to create these systems.”

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OPEN LETTER TO MINISTERS

OPEN LETTER TO

The Hon. Stockwell Day, P.C., M.P. he Hon. Rob Nicholson, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Public Safety Minister of Justice and Attorney General
VIA FAX: 613-952-2240 VIA FAX: 613-990-7255

Dear Ministers Day and Nicholson,

I write today to urge you to bring in the legislation necessary to implement national, searchable DNA Human Remains Index and a DNA Missing Persons databank.

As you are no doubt aware, there are thousands of missing persons cases in Canada. At this time there is no established method to cross reference recovered unidentified remains with individuals on the missing persons list.

A patchwork of processes is in place, but without federal leadership on this issue, providing the family and friends of missing persons the comfort of knowing that all unidentified found remains are checked to DNA provided of their missing loved one, identifying missing persons will continue to be a lengthy process where luck plays a much bigger role than it should.

In June, the Government of Canada responded to a Standing Committee report on this issue. A final report from a joint Federal-Provincial-Territorial Working Group is expected in November of this year. Public consultations have taken place.

It is time for action. It is time for the Federal Government to enable and take a leading role in the creation of a National DNA Bank and a National Missing Persons Index.

Yours truly,
(original signed by Wayne Marston)
Wayne Marston, MP
Hamilton East – Stoney Creek
NDP Advocate for Human Rights, Multiculturalism and Sport

BACK TO SCHOOL WITHOUT SUPPLIES: Local single-parent families struggle as Child Tax Benefit clawed back
MP Marston asks new Revenue Canada Minister to end the claw-back

Ottawa – In an open letter to the new Minister of Revenue Gordon O’Connor, Hamilton East – Stoney Creek MP Wayne Marston demanded that Harper’s government stop the claw-back and withholding of single-parent Child Tax Benefit.

“This week alone 3 single-parents, all women, came for assistance in my Hamilton office because Minister O’Connor’s department told them that they will have to pay back the Government thousands of dollars they received from the Child Tax Benefit. What was the reason the Department gave? Although they believe the parent with the children claiming the CTB lives alone, that apparently doesn’t equate to knowing that the other parent doesn’t live with them.” Marston added that “It is preposterous double-speak that means families in our community are suffering and parents have to add school supplies to the list of basic household items they cannot afford.”

Single-parents raising children must prove their marital status including living arrangements in order to be eligible for the single-parent tax benefit. Proving marital status and living arrangements is often difficult and can be demeaning to have one’s private life on display, as it can require going back several years and finding 3 separate individuals who can attest to their living situations.

“I asked the former Minister to look into this situation back in June and was told they do “no such thing” yet more women in my community are seeking assistance again as they receive threatening letters from CRA telling them they owe thousands of dollars. I’m hopeful the new Minister will have more to say and actually fix this problem” commented Marston.

“All single-parents should have access to programs, like the Child Tax Benefit, that are designed to assist them provide the basics to their children without having to jump through hoops.”

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OPEN LETTER TO MINISTER O'CONNOR

August 30th 2007

OPEN LETTER TO
The Hon. Gordon O’Connor
Minister of National Revenue
Via fax: 613-992-1043 (original to follow)

Dear Minister O’Connor,

First, please allow me to congratulate you on your new position as Minister of National Revenue. Ordinary Canadians will be looking to you and your Department for fair revenue policies that are designed to assist working families as they contribute to the economic prosperity of our nation.

I am writing today about a situation regarding the Child Tax Benefit that I raised with your predecessor in the House of Commons in June. Unfortunately, many single-parent families in my constituency of Hamilton East – Stoney Creek, mostly women headed households have approached me about the financial difficulty that they are in as a result of the clawback and withholding of the Child Tax Benefit.

In all the cases, these women headed households are being asked to prove their living arrangements i.e. that the parent of their child or children no longer lives with them. Often, women remain in the communal or matrimonial home after a separation or divorce so this can be difficult and your Departments’ approach seems to be to open these women’s lives up going back several years requiring “proof” of living arrangements through testimonials and documentation. But sometimes even that is not enough and these single parents are told they have to pay back money because although the officials believe that they do live alone, they don’t have proof of the other parent(s) living arrangements.

Children and the parents who are providing for them should not suffer because of a lack of insight or flexibility from your Department or because the other parent has not fulfilled their duty to prove that they no longer live in the same household as the child.

My staff has tried to work with CRA staff to resolve these cases, but single parents continue to receive letters demanding thousands of dollars back from the CTB and are regularly told the CTB will be withheld until living arrangement by the other parent are “proved”.

Minister O’Connor there has got to be a better way to provide the assistance these families require to ensure that the children are provided for. Women in my community have had to add school supplies to the list of basic household items that they cannot provide for their children at this time.

I look forward to your speedy response on these issues and would welcome another opportunity to speak about the particular cases that I have raised so that these families are provided with the benefit to which Canadians believe they are entitled.

It is time to fix this problem and ensure that the Child Tax Benefit is not clawed-back or withheld from hard-working families and the children who it is designed to help.

Yours truly,
(original signed by Wayne Marston)
Wayne Marston, MP
Hamilton East – Stoney Creek
NDP Advocate for Human Rights, Multiculturalism and Sport

In June 2007, I sent the document linked below because I wanted to be in touch on a couple of important issues like the so-called Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) being negotiated between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico and highlight some of the community events and work that was going on at the time.

'Rare' salamanders widen debate on turtle ponds
Richard Leitner, Stoney Creek
Published: June 15th 2007

The Hamilton Conservation Authority is asking the city to consider extending environmental protections to school board properties by turtle ponds near the Stoney Creek lakeshore.

Directors voted unanimously last week to request a more comprehensive study of two Community Beach ponds previously earmarked for protection, as well as a man-made one also reportedly home to birds, turtles and salamanders.

Should the city decide to officially designate the ponds and neighbouring land as an environmentally significant area, directors also left the door open for the conservation authority to assume ownership.

MARSTON PUSHES TORIES ON MANUFACTURING
JOBS STRATEGY & POVERTY ERADICATION

Ottawa – During Question Period today, Wayne Marston (MP Hamilton East – Stoney Creek) drilled the Harper government on when they will have a strategy to protect and create manufacturing jobs in Hamilton.

“It’s not just the workers at Stelco and Hamilton Specialty Bar that are feeling the impact of job losses in the manufacturing sector: it is their families and the community as a whole that loses when the economic spin-off generated from well-paying manufacturing jobs are lost in a community like ours.”

Click on the link below to find a mailing regarding Wayne Marston's efforts to save Stoney Creek's Turtle Ponds.

IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS

Statement on: Community Beach Ponds

Mr. Speaker, the Community Beach Ponds, also known as the Turtle Ponds, are one of the best remaining examples of diverse urban biospheres and are found in the Stoney Creek portion of my riding. Sadly, Turtle Ponds are at risk of being sold to housing developers.

The current land owners, our two school boards, cannot be faulted for wanting to sell and make money. We all know the shameful state of education financing in this country where the Conservative government and past Liberal governments have wiped their hands of providing adequate funding for our schools.

Wayne Marston introduces motion in House of Commons

Since being elected, I have been looking for practical, legislative solutions to the concerns and problems that I hear from families in our community. The average family that owns a home finds making ends meet at the end of the month difficult at times.

For example, many parents that I speak to would like to be able to put aside money to save for their children's education but find it impossible with all of the costs associated with owing their own home. I've also spoken to many people, who never bought a house until later in life and are now trying to make mortgage payments with one or two household members on a fixed income.

In a very interesting conversation with one constituent, we discussed the idea of making mortgage payments deductible. Although the management of property related taxes is exclusively a provincial responsibility, I started to think about what role the federal government could play in helping average families own homes for the first time. The result is the motion that is attached here that I introduced in the House of Commons in June 2007.

The intent of the motion is to encourage the Federal Government to take a leadership role in bringing the various provincial and territorial jurisdictions together to ensure that there are equal standards for mortgage deductibility established across the country that aim to provide proportionately equal benefits to families of low incomes and families with higher incomes.

Updates on the status of M-349 will be made available here as they occur. The full text of the motion can be accessed by clicking on the link below.

NDP, COMMUNITY GROUPS WIN FIGHT TO SAVE LOCAL CANADA SUMMER JOBS PROGRAMS

OTTAWA – Hamilton’s NDP MPs announced a victory for students and communities today, as Service Canada confirmed that all non-profit groups receiving funding to hire summer students last year will receive funding this year under Canada Summer Jobs.

“This is a good start,” said MP Wayne Marston (Hamilton East-Stoney Creek). “But more needs to be done”.

Rejection notices were sent last week to non-profit associations and municipalities who had previously offered valuable community programs, but who had expected funding according to the program’s criteria.