I hope everyone enjoyed another Christmas season and had the opportunity to spend some time with loved ones. I have enjoyed my time in the riding, having the opportunity to see a lot of you face to face over the past month.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and his team are working on putting together the 2013 Budget and my colleagues and I have been asking our constituents for input over the past couple of months. To that end, I hosted an economic roundtable on January 9th with municipal and community leaders from Central Alberta. The discussion was extremely informative and I will be taking those comments back to Minister Flaherty when I return to Ottawa. I have also asked for all members of the Red Deer riding to submit written budget suggestions either to my office or though www.fin.gc.ca.
The House of Commons will return sitting on Monday, January 28th and I look forward to joining my colleagues in Ottawa as we continue to act on the mandate we received in the June 2011 election. The economy remains the major focus: reducing red tape and positioning our country to remain competitive on the world stage. In addition, we will be moving forward with major changes to the RCMP Act, the Canada Transportation Act and continue to work on legislation to increase public safety with a focus on protecting victims, our youth and witnesses to crimes.
My website has recently undergone some changes and we are working hard to populate it with more material and photos. If you have a chance, check out www.earldreeshen.ca and let me know if you have any suggestions or comments on the new format.
Again, I thank you for your continued support. I will continue to represent your views and the views of Central Albertans in the House of Commons as our Conservative Government governs in the interests of all Canadians.
Until next time
Earl Dreeshen,
MP Red Deer