Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - May 29, 1979, Winnipeg, Manitoba May 1979 f we vote will show dec split by Ronald Koven Paris when West europeans in nine countries go to the polls for the first direct elections to the legislative Assembly of the european economic Community dec on june 7 and it will constitute the birth of one of the worlds largest democratic voting with a combined population of 259 Greece signed a treaty of accession to the dec monday which will make it the 10th member of that it will not formally become a and thus Able to vote in Assembly until except for France and where prime minister Margaret thatchers conservatives have recently attained the two countries where the very idea of advancing to Ward More european Unity has become an internal political these first european wide elections have stirred Little in West a recent poll shows Only about 30 per cent of the electorate said it would definitely with 45 per cent saying it would probably do where Premier Giulio Andreottis government is facing crucial parliamentary is too concerned with its own Domestic poli tics to have focused on the european parliament instead of reducing the european elections seems to be under lining in for the country was Cut into three districts along the lines of the bitter language divisions that have so often degenerated into communal flemish speakers Are to elect 13 Assembly members and French speakers inhabitants of the Brussels capital Dis Headquarters for most of the common markets bureaucratic a must decide individually if they want to vote for flemish or French the old dream French president Valery Giscard Destain was probably speaking for most West europeans recently when he described the old dream of an american style United states of Europe As being an extreme position these the european parliament is the legislative body of the european economic As a body whose 198 members were appointed by National parliaments to represent it has so far been largely a debating so it generally refrained from exercising its theoretically considerable Power Over the european Community budgets and to censure and ques Tion the Community executive com Mission in now that it is to be made up of 410 representatives directly elected by the the general expectation is that it will begin Mak ing its weight an Ideal forum this Prospect is especially appealing in West where the european parliament is viewed As the Ideal kind of International forum for West germans to exercise Strong they prefer to work quietly through Intima Tionna organizations in their continuing drive to regain Complete re acceptance by their fellow Many of whom still express Antigen Man attitudes stemming from the Sec Ond world each of the european Community four most populous nations Italy and West Germany will elect 81 with smaller delegations from the other five coun the general Assumption that the direct elections will boost the european Community authority could be Dis proved if Western Europe four main political streams Christian demo socialists and communists fall into Public conservatives All Over West Ern Europe Are expressing concern Over the likelihood that the combined socialist parties of the nine member states will dominate the parliament in the italian communists say they feel closer to the West German socialists than to the More doctrinaire French the British labovites Are unhappy about being in the same parliamentary group As the More federalist Continental the Community wide strains within the continents traditional political groups could eventually Lead to some interesting and unexpected realign ments Back inside the member coun Many analysts for better or for Ireland and the Netherlands will vote june the ballot boxes Are to remain sealed for counting simultaneously with those of Luxembourg and West Germany after the close of their polling places on june the Washington Post Maceachen touted As chief critic by Jim Robb up news service Ottawa watch for Allan Macea president of the privy Council and government House Leader in the Trudeau Cabinet to play a key role for the liberals in a party insider said he recalled that Defeated in the Diefenbaker landslide in spent four years As Lester pearsons parliamentary it was easily reelected last week in Cape Breton Highlands who was the principle author of the Points of order and questions of privilege with which pearsons opposition bedevilled Diefenbaker govern ment from 1958 to the liberals Are already gearing up for their opposition role when Parlia ment resumes this fall with Joe in at least one name has already gone Forward to Pierre As the lib eral whip for the coming speculation centres on at least four men for the key they Are Quebec maps Yves parliamentary Secretary to Maceachen in the last ses Sion Dennis Dawson and Claude Andre the Liberal Cau Cus will be dominated by other possibles Are Cornwall med Lumley and Toronto my Charles cac a Liberal source he said that John Trudeau minister of Federal provincial who was reelected in Kenora Rainy could prove to be the most effective Liberal in except for Trudeau High expectations the liberals Are expecting solid performances from the new maps elected in one is Pierre a transportation Law specialist who was a special assistant to Defeated transport minister Otto the other is David son of Montreal Alou ettes owner Sam he was offered a Safe seat in a Riding dominated by jewish voters but to be elected by French Cana Dian voters in other Liberal newcomers who May figure prominently in opposition roles Are John the former Federal government economist who knocked off conservative my Robert de also an in Ottawa and Lloyd who Defeated for Mer Manitoba Cabinet minister Sidney Spivak in Winnipeg fort whose younger brother was a policy adviser to was the Only Liberal member of the Manitoba Axworthy once served As a special assistant to Paul when he was transport minister in the Trudeau government and acted As chief staff Mem Ber of the Hellyer housing task Force in Axworthy also worked As a special assistant to former finance minister John other former ministers who Are expected to carry the Brunt of the Liberal opposition the Liberal source include Francis Andre Ouel Jean Chretien and Pierre de the liberals were also counting on Don Jamie sons but he is leaving the Federal Arena at least temporarily to Lead the liberals provincially in the prov Ince goes to the polls to elect a new government june former speaker Jarnes Jerome May also figure prominently on the Liberal opposition if he turns Down reported conservative offers to continue As Jerome ambitious if he and chooses a partisan political role it May be a Tipoff that he intends going after the Liberal leadership when Trudeau Steps Jerome and the outgoing prime min ister have not hit it off in recent primarily because Jerome has Bent Over backwards to be fair to All parties in the but he is bilingual and once prepared to leave politics for a judgeship that was never offered to him by Jerome May now have his Eye on bigger Allan Maceachen incompetence slows our Economy if there is a Canadian equivalent of the British disease it surely must be the determination to disregard the practical in favor of the possible in the Field of technological just As the British with its incompetence in intransigence in Trade and its total disregard for the economic consequences of strikes threatens that coun try economic so does the Ca Nadian disease Rob Canada of its proven leadership in Many technological it is nothing a few years ago Canadian responding to the needs of the armed developed an armoured personnel Carrier named the it was a machine Well within the capability of Canadian manufacturing to and its design was practical for its Basic require bobcats were never built in and never became part of this coun try armed forces the machine bogged Down As technicians Fred Cleverley attempted to produce variations that would allow it to fill other the possible variations were pursued for so Long that the practical require ments of the armed forces could not Canada bought the cur rent from the United the new machines could do the main Job just As the original bobcats they could not fill All but they were available because there was no Industry producing or their when Canada decided it needed a Mored scout cars it had to look else and this time the contract went to a country with no greater or production Ca than exists Here in the Canadian record in communications satellites is no Canada has three in owned by a government that will permit no Competition from commercial satellites owned private the Canadian satellites Are the Only thing they Lack is the communications they were de signed to Only one television Channel on one satellite is in it beams the Csc Northern until parliament was there were but most of the channels Are they go broke technology is far ahead of the think ing of bureaucrats about what will be if the satellites were owned the owners would Likely be Selling communications in order to re cover the Cost of their other they would go Ottawa will not permit pay lest it corrupt Canadian minds by introducing no Canadian Ottawa has no Money to fill the channels with its which happens to be a Chil Drens an educational Channel and Csc containing repeats of Previ Ous Csc but Ottawa does not go it keeps the satellites perhaps this is just As because the programs suggested leave one thing would anybody watch the satellite technology is in someone else must solve its practical use while Canada pursues a new technological goal in a picture machine called the machine is an excellent example of How clearly and precisely pictures can be but while Canada is perfecting a better other coun tries such As Britain and France Are already putting less sophisticated equipment into everyday they May not have As High standards As Canada in picture but they argue that the material being presented does not need these How can Canada continue to Harbor its diseased technology simply by mixing government in any new devel if the satellites had been privately and the owners faced bankruptcy if they left the Birds someone would have stepped in and canadians would have had better if Zelidon had been a private its marketing Branch would have had a stronger and canadians might now be playing with computer keyboards hooked up to their television just As people in Britain and France Are if the armed forces had simply sent their requirements to Pri vate instead of getting into the design Canadian soldiers would be driving if they and the same Industry was now build ing the scout More canadians would be at work wants better Deal London the common Market nation with the most at stake in future european economic Community appears to be the least engaged in the historic european parliament elections in the nine dec countries in political interest was exhausted and Campaign funds depleted by the nation Al election Here a few weeks and it is assumed that the victorious conservative party will easily win a Large majority of Britain 81 european parliament seats in the voting june in what had seemed to be Lively disagreements about Europe Between the conservative and labor parties just a few months ago have since while the conservatives Are clearly More committed to the common Market than the labor the conservatives now present themselves As just As determined As labor to fight for a better Deal for although it is now one of the poorer common Market Britain has become the largest net contributor to the dec this is mostly because of the farm subsidies it pays As a food in these subsidies Are paying Farmers in Richer dec coun tries for huge surpluses of but Ter and other conservative prime minister mar Garet Thatcher has pledged to work to reduce Britain to eliminate the farm surpluses and modify the subsidy and to protect Brit Ains vital offshore fish stocks from depletion by the fishing fleets of fellow dec thatchers Chancellor of the exch Geoffrey recently said in Brussels that he astonished at the size of Britain contribution to the he said the problem must be resolved this Thatcher pledge at a dinner she gave for visiting West German Chancellor Helmut Thatcher said that we shall judge what British interests Are in the dec and we shall be Resolute about de fending she that this would be done within the context of a generally cooperative British approach to the although Thatcher had shown relatively Little interest in the dec in the past and some of her fellow right its in the conservative party fear the dec As a threat to British she has backed up her pro europeans into key foreign policy the labor whose left Wing still wants to take Britain out of the common was More contentious toward the dec while in according to the of told joke in Brus it was always obvious when Britain labor government delegation arrived because the whining did not Stop when their planes engines shut former labor minister Anthony Wedgwood uncrowned Leader of labors tried unsuccessfully to make the common Market an Issue in the recent he is now trying to whip up a vigorous ant common mar Ket Campaign for the european Parlia ment labors platform demands drastic changes that critics say would require a renegotiation or withdrawal of British member on the other former labor prime minister James Callaghan As trying to steer a Neutral he wants to avoid making the labor Campaign seem like a second referendum on British membership in the despite higher food prices and other problems that have been blamed on the common a majority of British voters have consistently favored staying in problems Are mounting the obvious friction Between Cal who was recently reelected As labors Leader despite the party elec Tion defeat May and who has quit Callaghan Shadow Cabinet to speak out More is Only one of several problems plaguing labor in the Campaign for the european Parlia ment because the vote follows on the heels of the National election so the turnout May be As Low As 50 per this should mean a big drop in the labor in labor has no More Money to As a the conservatives Are expected to win Between 50 and 60 of the 78 european parliament constituencies on the British the conservatives have fielded a much More and More prestigious slate of pro european ;