By Stephen Best, Director

On Monday May 12th, the voters of Perth-Middlesex will elect their new Member of Parliament. Environment Voters is urging everyone to vote for Brian Innes, the Liberal candidate.

This is why. One of the most important decisions a person makes is who they vote for to be their MP. Electing a highly qualified MP who has the experience, skill, and education necessary to compete in Ottawa and champion the people in their riding is crucial to insuring that a community receives its fair share of government programs, benefits, and financial support for local initiatives. Electing a less capable MP, as too often happens, condemns a community to political irrelevance, neglect, and years of poor government support.

Electing the best MP is so important for a community that Environment Voters is extremely cautious about who it endorses. Our main concern, of course, is a candidate’s or their party’s environmental record.

Nevertheless, we never let our interests in a clean environment, wildlife protection, and the direct link between a healthy environment and a healthy economy overshadow the local need for a strong MP. We only endorse candidates who, in our opinion, will best serve the people in their community.

Environment Voters is endorsing Brian Innes, first, because he is the person who will make the best MP for the people of Perth Middlesex. No other candidate can match his qualifications, experience, education, or accomplishments. Secondly, Brian Innes understands how important a clean, well protected environment is

to our health, our economy, and our future.

And finally, over the last year, the federal Liberal government has made important progress protecting the environment and wildlife, and reducing animal cruelty. The Liberals passed Canada’s first federal endangered species legislation, the Species at Risk Act; ratified the Kyoto Protocol on global warming; and passed legislation modernizing the animal cruelty sections of the Criminal Code.

If the voters of Perth-Middlesex elect Brian Innes, they will be represented by one of the most qualified MPs in the country. Brian Innes is a farmer, who is also involved in bringing low cost telecommunications and state of the art broadband internet access to rural communities. He is a graduate of three universities including the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, and received his education not only in Canada and the United States, but also Europe. He is a college instructor. And, he has served in government at the federal, provincial and municipal levels. Unlike any other candidate running in Perth-Middlesex, Brian Innes has the qualifications to be — and, if elected, will likely become — a cabinet minister.

As for environmental protection, Brian Innes is the kind of MP that is needed in Ottawa to insure that the Liberal government remains committed to improving the quality of our environment.

This is why Environment Voters has endorsed Brian Innes, and is urging everyone who cares about strong representation for Perth-Middlesex in Ottawa, and a clean, healthy environment to vote for Brian Innes.