EVENT DATE: January 11, 2017
TOPIC: Government is broken. Can it be fixed?

Senator Bob Runciman began his lifetime of public service in 1972. After eight years on city council in Brockville, he spent 29 years as the Progressive Conservative MPP to Queens Park for the riding of Leeds, serving in six different cabinet posts, and as his party’s House leader. He was appointed to the Senate in 2010, and is currently chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs and a member of the Standing Senate Committee on Transportation and Communications.

 Senator Runciman recently applauded the approval of Plan 2014 by the International Joint Commission, which governs water levels on Lake Ontario and  the St. Lawrence River. This plan is designed to restore more natural variations in water levels, and will be implemented in the coming months. Runciman feels this is a win for the environment, as well as tourism and hydro, without hurting the shipping industry.

 However, the Senator has been critical of the length of time taken to reach this conclusion. And he feels it is symptomatic of a larger problem, ineffective Government. Hence the title of his speech, “Government is broken. Can it be fixed?”, using Plan 2014 as an example.