News
Cancer Action Plan Needed, Says MacKenzie
22 February 2010-9:27am
OTTAWA – Mark Mackenzie, Green Party candidate in the Ottawa West-Nepean’s Provincial by-election, is calling for a specific immediate action plan to address Canada’s growing cancer challenge.
"Attributing the causes of cancer to laziness, lifestyle, and aging issues simply doesn’t cut it,” claims MacKenzie who went on to emphasize that, “These may be contributing factors but they don’t explain why we’re in the midst of a cancer crisis reaching almost epidemic proportions.”
“By choosing me when they go to the polls, residents of Ottawa West-Nepean can be confident they will be voting for an energetic MPP who will actively call for actions that will address the underlying causes of cancer. Such things as a switch to safe personal products, introducing provisions in building codes for less toxic new home construction, expand our province’s cosmetic pesticide ban, and promote the growth of safely-grown organic food for starters,” declares MacKenzie.
“The increase in other debilitating diseases such as early on set diabetes, obesity, particularly among our children, and the health care needs of an ageing population are crying out to be dealt with, and dealt with soon,” he stated.
“The time is long gone when we simply stand by, watch, amass endless data and strike committee after committee. We must become more proactive. Governments need to actively work towards implementing plausible, concrete solutions and start that work now,” says The Green Party hopeful.
--- 30 ---
For more information, please contact:
Mark MacKenzie
Green Party of Ontario Candidate
For Ottawa West-Nepean
Phone: 613-224-0050
Email:info@markmackenzie.ca
Tackle Cancer Epidemic Now, Says Green Party Candidate
19 February 2010 10:02am
OTTAWA – “Numbers don’t lie,” says Mark MacKenzie, Green Party of Ontario candidate for Ottawa West-Nepean.
“Right now the statistics are grim. One out of 2.3 men and one out of 2.6 women will contract cancer during their lifetimes. People are unaware that we’re exposed to about 80,000 human-made chemicals with only 15,000 of them barely tested for safety. We Greens believe that this senseless exposure to dangerous chemicals has to be stopped, and stopped soon,” asserts MacKenzie, a board member of Prevent Cancer Now.
“Cancer has always taken its toll but never to the degree that we see today. Ours is the first generation to be hit this hard. Who doesn’t know someone who’s has cancer. How many of us have lost a friend or family member? As your prospective MPP for Ottawa West-Nepean, I will make it my personal goal to address the problem with the urgency it deserves,” states the Green Party hopeful.
“Safe and healthy environments, free of cancer-causing substances, should be the birthright of every Canadian. Decreases in cancer incidence can and must be achieved by eliminating carcinogens from the air we breathe, the water we drink, the products we use, our places of work, and the food we eat,” states MacKenzie.
It’s time to focus on preventing illness, not just treating ill health.
--- 30 ---
For more information, please contact:
Mark MacKenzie
Green Party of Ontario Candidate
For Ottawa West-Nepean
Phone: 613-852-2371
Email: info@markmackenzie.ca
Website: http://www.markmackenzie.ca
Health Promotion an Absolute Imperative, Says MacKenzie
17 February 2010 10:55am
OTTAWA – With roughly 45% of Ontario’s budget dedicated to spiraling health care costs, “taking health promotion seriously is absolutely essential,” asserted Mark MacKenzie, Green Party of Ontario candidate in the Ottawa West-Nepean by-election.
The Green Party of Ontario would at least double the current allotment dedicated to health promotion. “ The Green Party understands that a penny spent today on illness prevention means a dollar saved tomorrow in health care costs,” contended MacKenzie. Additionally, the party will work to ensure that funds are spent on community programs that support healthy living.”
“One glaring example of the disdain directed towards the health of our communities lies in the fact that the McGuinty Liberals took out money from the health promotion budget and poured it into Toronto’s Pan Am Games bid. This constitutes a fundamental misjudgment and lack of vision,” stated MacKenzie.
“We must tackle the number of people getting sick by getting at the environmental factors that are affecting human health. We cannot afford to stand idly by while the current government treats health as an after the fact reality. Many of the root causes of modern human sickness are preventable and we should be acting accordingly,” said MacKenize.
--- 30 ---
For more information, please contact:
Mark MacKenzie
Green Party of Ontario Candidate
For Ottawa West-Nepean
Phone: 613-224-0050
Email: info@markmackenzie.ca
Quicken Pace of Retrofitting, Says Green Party Candidate
13 February 2010 10:55am
OTTAWA – The Green Party of Ontario candidate for Ottawa West-Nepean believes governments need to expedite retrofitting as a way of boosting economic activity.
Mark MacKenzie asserts that “turning our economy into a sustainable one need not be a futuristic goal. This is something we can do now that will have highly beneficial immediate and long-term effects.”
“The lack of leadership exhibited by both provincial and federal branches of government is breath-taking. Bad decisions on auto sector support will rob retrofitting funding. By electing me on March 4, the people of Ottawa West-Nepean can feel safe that this important change is pursued to the utmost,” said MacKenzie.
“We have the talent and ingenuity of the graduates of the Green architecture program at Algonquin College. Unfortunately, when these people enter the workforce and start their own businesses, they will be burdened by having to charge their clients an extra 8% thanks to the ill-concieved Liberal HST policy,” contented MacKenzie.
The Green Party of Ontario by-election platforms reads: “We believe an investment fund for home owners, businesses and municipalities that makes buildings more efficient should be established. This will create thousands of jobs today that will save us money in the long run by reducing our dependence on gas, electricity and oil.”
--- 30 ---
For more information, please contact:
Mark MacKenzie
Green Party of Ontario Candidate
For Ottawa West-Nepean
Phone: 613-224-0050
Email: info@markmackenzie.ca
Abuse of Power Evident in Nortel Dealings, Says MacKenzie
11 February 2010 5:00pm
OTTAWA – The Ontario government’s plan to issue $200 million in funds to Nortel pensioners is classic Machiavellian politics, according to Mark MacKenzie, the Green Party of Ontario candidate in the Ottawa West-Nepean by-election.
“To be clear, we support the assistance being supplied to Nortel workers and their families. However, one must ask the question - if there had been no by-election would these people still be twisting in the wind?” MacKenzie opined.
“Through their regrettable lack of initial oversight, the Liberal government let the situation perpetuate so that they could now appear to be the White Knight on a horse, swooping in just in time to save the masses. We predict that people will see through this crass manipulation on March 4 and vote Green Party as a way of rejecting this outright abuse of power,” stated MacKenzie.
The Green Party candidate asserts that a double standard previously underlined the dynamic with the Nortel pensioners. “The Liberal provincial government, in conjunction with their Conservative federal counterparts, were all too willing to bail out the failing auto industry. Both General Motors and Chrysler contributed to Liberal coffers. Now that there’s a provincial by-election afoot the Liberals experience an 11th hour conversion to the legitimacy of the rightful claims of Nortel pensioners? I don’t think voters are naïve enough to be taken in,” contended MacKenzie.
“We in the Green Party believe that corporate donations to political parties in Ontario should be eliminated. We the people must have a democracy we can be proud of. The role that corporate money plays in public policy is truly brought home by the auto industry bailout vis-à-vis Nortel pensioners. ,” said MacKenzie.
--- 30 ---
For more information, please contact:
Mark MacKenzie
Green Party of Ontario Candidate
For Ottawa West-Nepean
Phone: 613-852-2371
Email: info@markmackenzie.ca