MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT H U L L - AYLMER @GregFergusLiberal @GregFergus @GregFergus Dear friends, Upcoming Events First of all, let me thank all those of you who reached out to share your feedback on these personal essays. They are but one of M.P. Townhall: Building the ways I try to help give you insight into my role as your Member of Parliament and the issues that I face daily. Although I try to introduce these issues with dry humour, the issue that I want to share with you today could not be more serious: how we Closer Ties on Both Sides speak to each other – as neighbours, citizens, and particularly as responsible politicians. of the Ottawa River May 13, 2019, 7pm We must always seek to be more thoughtful and truthful about how we talk with each other. It is everyone’s business to bring Grande salle - Université du people together. Building bridges does not mean engaging in mindless correctness – the kind of speech that is so tentative that it Québec en Outaouais loses most of its meaning or truthfulness. It means seeking ways to invite others to join the conversation. It means listening 283 Alexandre-Taché Blvd. attentively to others, as well as finding ways to truly express yourself. This latter point is important. As my mother used to tell me, I have two ears and one mouth so I should use them in at least that proportion. Thinking before speaking can save a lot of grief. 10km Morning Run with Greg May 18, 2019, 8am For example, in February one city councillor made remarks to a local paper that conflated acts of terrorism with our own Parc Moussette Muslim community’s efforts to integrate in the Outaouais. Although she and a second public figure defended her intemperate 361 De Lucerne Blvd. statement as so-called free speech, I will argue that it was neither free of consequences nor real speech. Their comments were both inaccurate and hurtful. M.P. Townhall: Open Mic! There is no possible benefit to free speech if it is wilfully or negligently inaccurate. Communication is more than just sound May 18, 2019, 11am bites. It represents a profound desire to share a common understanding. Therefore, there cannot be genuine communication if it Grande salle - Université du is based on a lie or can be easily debunked. Québec en Outaouais At last month’s sugar shack festival in Aylmer, a Muslim parent of a five-year old girl came up to me to make a heartfelt plea. 283 Alexandre-Taché Blvd. “I beg you to tell your fellow politicians to stop picking on us. If they want to pick on me, I can take it. But it doesn’t just affect me! Their speech threatens my daughter’s safety. I am afraid that someone will attack her at school.” Open Doors May 25, 2019, 10:30am to noon What a frightening prospect. We can all agree that no one deserves to be concerned for the safety of their children. One does not Community Office have to look further for what potential tragic consequences could be than the recent shootings at a New Zealand mosque. There are some very unbalanced people in our world who will eat this vile stuff up and act out. This is the very real peril and danger of 179 Prom. du Portage, Suite 301 extremist speech, both online and in public. In the lead up to those terrorist assassinations, there was no shortage of examples of targeted and hurtful (if not hateful) speech that was directed at Muslims and immigrants. I live in hope that the shock and 10km Morning Run with Greg outrage at the deaths of the 50 New Zealanders has curbed the appetite for such intolerant speech. June 1, 2019, 8am Parc Moussette I promise to continue to guard against the lies and inaccuracies that are trumped up as free speech. We all need to be vigilant. If 361 De Lucerne Blvd. we don’t, we will only be exposing ourselves to social division – creating “us and them” categories. Sowing division is completely opposite to building community. Open Doors Despite all this, I remain an optimist. Aside from that February outburst, there has been a remarkably consistent high level of June 1 2019, 10:30am to noon public debate around issues of openness in the Outaouais. We have something special here: studies have shown that we have an Community Office extraordinary high level of social integration and harmony in Gatineau, even within the context of the already high Canadian 115 Principale Street, Suite 102 standards. I often brag to my fellow parliamentarians that the people of Hull-Aylmer always expect better. There is a low tolerance for political partisanship here. And a high expectation for reasonableness. Hurtful and inaccurate statements by your political representatives have a very short shelf-life here. (Thank goodness!) Annual family BBQ (Hull) June 22, 2019, 11:30am We’re on a roll, so let’s keep it going. There will be an election in the coming months. I will strongly encourage you to take part Parc Moussette by organizing and/or taking part in community debates. Ask tough, thoughtful questions that seek to invite people into a 361 De Lucerne Blvd. conversation. It is through these kinds of bridge-building efforts that together we will strengthen our community, reinforce our democracy, and build a better Canada. Annual family BBQ (Aylmer) Be good. July 1, 2019, 11:30am Aylmer Monastery 161 Principale street HULL 179, Prom. du Portage, Suite 301 Gatineau, Quebec J8X 2K5 PS: In the same vein, let me share with you some thoughts about the controversy surrounding the resignations of two cabinet 819-994-8844 ministers earlier this year. If all parties have shared all that there is to share, then I see this is a sincere debate of differing values Fax. : 819-994-8557 and policies. As you know I am not a member of the cabinet, but if it is anything similar to serving as your Member of Parliament, I can assure you that they must be lobbied and pressured each and every day as I am by the competing interests of the 110 000 residents of Hull-Aylmer. It is not easy; it requires knowing oneself and one’s values. From my vantage point, it AYLMER doesn’t seem to be a case of undue pressure. Nonetheless, I am pleased that Commissioner of Ethics is reviewing this matter, as 115 Principale Street, Suite 102 I have confidence that he will write an independent report. I am also pleased that a special advisor is looking at the issue of Gatineau, Quebec J9H 3M2 whether the roles of Minister of Justice and Attorney General for Canada be separated. If you would like to discuss this matter 819-682-1125 with me further, please call any one of the community offices to make an appointment. Fax. : 819-994-8557 OTTAWA House of Commons Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6 613-992-7550 Visit our website and sign up to our monthly events, Fax. : 613-992-7599 and electronic newsletters www.GregFergusParl.ca Greg Fergus, MP Hull – Aylmer Hull-Aylmer’s First Seniors Council Last autumn, more than 20 senior residents joined the first Hull-Aylmer Seniors Council that I organized. It is a joy to discuss issues that matter to them. The mem- bers of the Seniors Council will be making recommen- dations that will be shared with the federal government. The new Minister of Seniors, the Hon. Filomena Tassi, has also been invited to attend our council meeting. Friendship Day was a celebration at the Cégep de l’Outaouais for former refugees from Syria, Iraq, and Palestine. What a beautiful intercultural mix between new immigrants During the second meeting we decided to focus on three and the residents Gatineau! topics: safe and affordable housing (including home care and combating isolation), taxation, and both medi- Report from the M.P. Town Hall on Public Spaces cal assistance in dying and palliative care. I hosted a MP town hall on public spaces last February 25, 2019, at the Uni- At the third meeting, we discussed safe and affordable versité du Québec en Outaouais. I was joined by Cédric Tessier, councillor for housing measures and which organizations could be Hull-Wright, and numerous citizens of Hull-Aylmer to discuss how we can consulted to achieve concrete solutions. improve our public spaces for the benefit of all. We’re also planning a meeting between the Senior To help frame the discussion, information was distributed on public spaces Council and the Youth Council so that the members, owned by the federal government within Hull-Aylmer and the wider national who are at different stages of their lives, can connect capital region: the Gatineau Park, Jacques-Cartier Park, the Moore Farm, the and share their views. shore of Brewer’s Creek, and our many recreational paths. Seniors are the backbone of our country and it’s im- Most of these federal public spaces are managed by the National Capital Com- portant we come up with ways to concretely make their mission (NCC), a politically detached Crown corporation tasked with being lives better. the principal steward and long-term planner of Canada’s capital region. The first specific site we discussed was the Moore Farm, a historic farm of over 25 acres located near the corner of Saint-Raymond Blvd and Alexandre- Taché Blvd. The farm and its heritage buildings currently sit unoccupied, with the NCC looking for a long-term tenant. The consensus of the discussion was that the property should continue to serve an agricultural purpose and remain open to the public.