The Business of Local Government: Mississauga City Council

Countries in the Commonwealth are said to have a simple, yet effective structure of government. They have ways to deal with issues, be it a small issue on a street in a city, or the question of crime safety in a state, or even the defence of the whole country. Each level has its political masters, ready to tackle all problems. A level of government that mostly works behind the scenes, is Local Government. Local City Council, Parish Councils and School District Boards in some cases all work in order to ensure the smooth running of a township or city. 

The iBusiness Times managed to have an exclusive interview with Mississauga City Councillor, and former Member of Parliament, Bonnie Crombie. In this interview, Councillor Crombie comments on the role of a city council, how it is different to being in the Parliament, and a few other things.

We would like to thank Mississauga Ward 5 (The Largest Ward in Mississauga) City Counillor, Mrs Bonnie Crombie and her personal staff for letting us get in touch with her.

The interview:

How did you get into politics? Where were your humble beginnings?

I have been involved in politics for most of my life. I became involved in my teens in student politics. I have volunteered on many campaigns and have been active in politics at all three levels of government.

What is the function of the City Council?

The job of City Council is ultimately to ensure the good governance of the City of Mississauga. We do this by passing by-laws related to a host of issues. City Councillors are first and foremost the representatives of the people of the city and act as advocates for people in their wards. We are also tasked with ensuring the business of the city is done in a timely manner and that we continue to progress. At the same time, City Councillors can do a great deal in their wards as community and neighbourhood builders. They can support local programs, host festivals and events, and make a significant difference in the lives of residents.

What do you enjoy most of your job as a politician in the local government?

I thoroughly enjoy meeting and working with residents. It gives me great satisfaction to assist them with their concerns, but also to work with them to build up our communities and take our city forward. Public service is incredibly rewarding and at the municipal level, a councillor can achieve results for residents much more quickly than at other levels.

We understand you were formerly a Member of Parliament, is there any difference you find between the issues you bring up to the council, and the Parliament of Canada?

There is a difference in the scope of the issues I deal with. As a federal Member of Parliament, I often dealt with immigration cases and issues that were national in scope. As a municipal politician, I deal with issues that are much more local. For instance, if a watermain ruptures, I am the person that residents call to fix it. The job is much more immediate at the municipal level. I have found that my experience at the federal level, especially having been a member of the Standing Committees on Infrastructure and Public Accounts have given me a different perspective on the business at City Hall. I see the importance of cities to the future of our country and the importance of providing adequate funding to our municipalities for critical items like infrastructure and transit.

Mississauga is currently part of the Peel Region, and there has been much talk of the Mississauga City Council wanting to break off as an independent region, do you support this? Why?

I would be interested in seeing the business case for this before I would make any decision. Mississauga has been part of Peel Region for 40 years and to remove ourselves from this partnership could result in additional costs. As Mississauga continues to grow and develop into a pre-eminent city in Canada, I think it is important that we have a conversation about our governance and where we want to go.

What immediate changes would you like to bring to Mississauga, should you win the upcoming Mayoral Elections?

My priorities are simple: invest in rapid transit, now; build our infrastructure and strengthen our economic competitiveness; and respect taxpayers by ensuring residents continue to receive high quality services for their tax dollar.

Do you have any advice to the young and budding politicians?

Get involved in your community first, before you decide to run. And, become as well-rounded as possible. It is important to have a wide depth and breadth of experience before entering political life, including charitable and not-for-profit service, and community involvement. There are many ways to serve your community and I think it is important that people running for office have this experience first before they put their name on the ballot.

As this interview shows, every stage is necessary. Parliament stages answer big, national and international political question marks, while the Local Government ensures that everything goes well in the individual cities. City Councils are definitely a good way of having citizens voices heard.

Panasonic will sell the Panasonic TV Birthplace

Panasonic has announced plans to sell the first television manufacturing plant it opened, in the region of Ibiraki near the Japanese city of Osaka. As reported by ChannelNewsAsia, the electronics giant will be selling 60% of the 120,000 metre squared plant, at a price of 10 Billion Yen, or $97 Million. The plant has been active with Panasonic for around 50 years, and as the company looks to move away from loss making sectors of its business, the sale of this plant may be crucial. Looking at the sales figures between 2011 and 2013, the company has been dropping in revenue. The multinational clocked in at 8.693 Trillion Yen in 2011, however dropped by just under 1.4 Trillion Yen in 2013, while recording sales of 7.303 Trillion Yen. 

The plant has been planned to be sold to the Japanese Homebuilder, Daiwa Home, while the remaining 40% of the plant is still in consideration, with possible plans to sell to the Ibiraki Municipal Administration, and it could be further used for residential purposes.

Source(s): http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/international/panasonic-to-sell/1187146.html

Nikkei

The Battle for Baiji: Oil Prices

The price on the markets for Crude Oil has risen dramatically as the battle in the Baiji Oil Refinery in Iraq rages on. Isis Militants in Iraq captured the refinery, which has had impact worldwide. The markets for Crude Oil and Crude Oil Brent have revved upwards since 6th June, around when tensions in Iraq over oil and the Isis terror threat began to increase. Crude Oil has spiked by around $4, possibly nearing $5 soon. Crude Oil Brent has risen by over $6. This has caused petrol prices around the world to spike, India which was already suffering from a power crisis and a shortage of coal has had its petrol prices put into overdrive. As foreign forces arrive in Iraq to try and minimise the violence and damage, the battle goes on. Foreign dignitaries, politicians, diplomats have been giving there orders and instructions, trying to expel the Isis militants from Iraq's largest, and the internationally counted upon Oil Refinery.

Updates!

Dear Readers,
Apologies for not updating the blog, we have been trying to sort things out both for the blog and ourselves, as the academic year ends, here in Singapore!
A few announcements to make:

By the end of the year The iBusiness Times will have routes in two more countries. Currently we operate from Singapore, however by the end of 2014 our routes will have expanded possibly to Canada and a third, unconfirmed country, possibly Spain or United Kingdom. 
We are also looking to get in on some interviews from employees in multinational corporations. 

I will be updating more regularly now, and our growth plans will continue!
Thanks.

The Debate: Dual Citizenship - Your questions answered

Dual Citizenship is a much talked about topic nowadays, as the world of politics heats up. One country that remains out on the matter, is India. India with the new formation of government, with the new, quick acting and adamant Narendra Modi, and the new Union Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh, have been in the eyes of many Non-Residential Indians, in order to change the dual-citizenship laws.

What is Dual citizenship?
Dual citizenship is where a person is a citizen of two different countries. Most commonly, this takes place when someone born in one country, or who holds a natural citizenship in one country, seeks another one in a different country.

Why would people want another citizenship?
People may seek a second citizenship to claim benefits in one country, or be able to partake in activities only accessible to citizens, such as running for elections or voting, while still being in official touch with their land of origin?

Why did the previous government not adopt dual-citizenship?
The most likely reason would be due to the state of the foreign affairs. It would spark debate in other countries, about people having two citizenships, one from India, and one of another between which the ties are heated or damaged.

Why should the new government adopt it?
The BJP government should adopt this for numerous reasons. First of all, with the coming of Modi, diplomatic ties may be set to cool off and benefit. Dual citizenship would allow a more diverse view between the people, and could further mend or enhance ties. It would also help complete former BJP Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji's wish, of having dual citizenship open to NRI's in certain countries, which again would be a step towards stronger ties, potential trade agreements and a higher possibility of investments in India, with many people of Indian origin reconnected with their country, on a national or official level. There are very few negatives to it!

Has anything been said/done yet about Dual Citizenship in India?
Yes and no. There has been a bit of poking around on the issue, and the BJP did plan to do something about Dual-citizenship for the people of Goa, however there has been no straight debate or discussion on the issue. A petition has appeared though, from an NRI/OCI in Australia, take a look:
Petition for Dual Citizenship for NRIs

Personally, I am in favour of Dual-Citizenship being granted to NRIs, partly because I am one, and have been travelling around the world. Due to this, I want to continue doing so, and should I seek citizenship benefits abroad, I do not want to lose my precious, official Indian identity.

When Politics touches Business: The European Union

As the results of the European Union elections begin to materialise and come together, like any national or international level activity has it's effects on the markets. The Indian General Elections saw huge changes in the major markets, which the NSE and BSE surging on even the exit polls, which even if were close to correct this time, remained untrusted by politicians, political gurus and enthusiasts, based on past polls. The exit polls were enough to shake up the markets thoroughly, allowing them to gain points in the thousands. Now, as the top level politicians rap up their elections for the term, the European markets are responding to it, with the German DAX gaining. The iBusiness Times would predict an upwards of 40 to 65 points at the moment. The Euro has weakened slightly, but not anything to prominent, market changing or significant. However, standing out the most are the Italian markets, such as the FTSE Italia Mid Cap. Opening around 200 points higher on 26th May, and increasing constantly by another 171.05 points for the next couple of days, the index is likely seeing the end to a near month long drop.

China passes enterprise changing decisions

There is always competition in business. Many businesses now are looking to grow internally through new products and branches, however business are not the only ones effecting this competition. Countries regulating and standardising products in their countries have taken to the markets, abruptly saying yes or no to certain products and businesses. A few days ago the Chinese economy made news as it restricted Microsoft the permission to sell Windows 8 in its market. As straight forward as this was, it then okayed Sony into its market. There have been sources saying that it was to protect its citizens, to wait for its market to stabilise or saturate in certain areas before letting companies introduce their extension plans,  or even to have a go at effecting international business competition. Rocking the highest population, and high in the charts of the highest number of businessmen-made-millionaires, as well as one of the largest economies, China is seen as an international business hub, both to start and expand. However, is it easy? No... Will the government just let multinationals in? Maybe... It's hard though! They have already rejected Facebook, Twitter and even YouTube, and now Microsoft for Windows 8, but again made headlines today as they okayed Sony for the Xbox for the PlayStation 4. Could this mean a possible hinder in these major corporations' business?