Hyer Denounces Cuts to Northwest Veterans
Thunder Bay Veteran’s Affairs office to close
May 4, 2012
THUNDER BAY – After decades of supporting those who fought for our country, the federal government’s Thunder Bay Veteran Affairs office is facing permanent closure.
The local Thunder Bay office provides services for approximately 500 Senior veterans, 600 younger veterans, and several RCMP officers. It is also part of the Veteran Affairs mandate to help Survivors and families of those killed in the line of duty. The Thunder Bay Veteran Affairs office alone serves an estimated 3000 people and covers a large geographical area spanning from the Manitoba boarder to Blind River. The regressive decision to close our regional Veteran Affairs office will have serious implications for veterans and their families.
“’Lest We Forget’ seems to have been forgotten by the Conservative Government” said Hyer. “Both Senior veterans and young veterans deserve care and support, not a slap in the face. Local employees have done their best to supply veterans with health care support, home visits, and timely services. Now those who have seen combat will need to battle for services here at home. Not only will Thunder Bay lose 10 good jobs, we also lose our local capacity to serve those who have served this strong country.”
Veteran Affairs claims they will continue to offer ‘full support and services’, even though the local office faces closure. It is suspected this will be done by offering veterans a toll free line they can call, or by referring vets to a web-site. Some concerned elderly veterans, who typically have limited computer skills, could be left behind.
Younger veterans rely on Veteran Affairs for assistance dealing with serious injury, the loss of a loved one, or transitioning into civilian life through job training. “Thunder Bay is home to active and dedicated soldiers who deserve our respect. Closing the doors of our regional Veteran Affairs office shows the opposite. Young veterans coming home from Afghanistan deserve support. They have done their part, and this is the thanks they get from our current government” Hyer comments. “Cuts to Veteran Affairs simply need to stop. Why would the government treat those who have made enormous sacrifices for our country like this? It is unconscionable.”
Mr. Hyer has been a supporter of Veterans and their families, making regular contact with the Thunder Bay Military Family Resource Centre, visiting veterans, and offering support to families. Mr. Hyer will be raising this issue in the House of Commons with the government.
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Bruce Hyer: Government must intervene in Canada Post copyright lawsuit
Copyright ownership of postal codes would harm small biz, NGOs, economy
May 3, 2012
OTTAWA – Bruce Hyer, MP (Thunder Bay-Superior North) is calling on the Harper Government to intervene in a Canada Post lawsuit in order to foster innovation and small business growth in Canada. In what could become a landmark legal case, the crown corporation has sued Geolytica, Inc, an Ottawa-based small business that had compiled a postal code list through an ingenious method of crowdsourcing.
“Canada Post is claiming copyright ownership over all Canadian postal codes, and now appears to be suing small businesses that compile their own postal code lists,” said Hyer on Parliament Hill. “Canada Post wants to force individuals and organizations to buy a postal code database from them for thousands of dollars. This is not only unaffordable for most small businesses and non-governmental organizations; it flies in the face of the government’s stated “Open Data” policy… and it could put the brakes on the economy. The government needs to step up to rein in Canada Post before a harmful precedent is set.”
“Canada Post’s aggressive stance has major repercussions for our economy and society,” explained Hyer. “Every church group with a newsletter, every florist with a delivery list, and every large company that deals with shipping could be sued for copyright infringement if their contact list uses postal codes. Because Canada Post is claiming copyright over individual postal codes as well as lists, anyone sending so much as a post card via FedEx is in violation of copyright as they see it. This will serve no-one but Canada Post.”
“The government announced an ‘Open Data’ initiative last year with great fanfare,” noted Hyer. “But all the trumpeting about open government means little if it won’t step in where needed to actually ensure government departments, agencies and crown corporations aren’t moving in the opposite direction. Given that postal authorities in most countries, including the US, do not copyright their postal codes, Minister Denis Lebel can easily step in to resolve this situation. I have written to him to him and expect him to take action.”
“The government needs to start re-evaluating its stance on data that taxpayer money already paid to compile or create,” added Hyer. “Most data that does not pose a security risk should be freely available: why should Canadians have to pay for it twice?”
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