Gravelle on the gun registry: ‘I didn’t lie. I changed my mind’ – by Tony Muma (Sudbury Star-April 23, 2011)

The Sudbury Star, the City of Greater Sudbury’s daily newspaper. This article was published on April 23, 2011.

Gravelle touted the NDP’s Canadian Mining Strategy initiative and was surprised to learn nobody had ever thought of a mining strategy for Canada. The Mining Strategy would also involve better consultation of First Nations, Gravelle said.

Gravelle said the NDP would not have stopped a Vale takeover, they would have made it “more transparent. We’re not against foreign ownership, we’re against foreign takeover. But at the end of the day, we want such a takeover to be of net benefit to Canada.”

Claude Gravelle took time away from campaigning to have an editorial board meeting with The Sudbury Star and said simply: “e-12.”

In election speak, Gravelle was referring to the 12 days remaining (at that time) until Canadians go to the polls again to decide who will represent them in Ottawa. The federal election is May 2.

Gravelle, who held many different positions at Inco before becoming a town councillor in the former Town of Rayside-Balfour, said he knew what he was getting into when he became MP for Nickel Belt in 2008.

He said representing the riding involves “many long days, long hours, but it’s been fun.”

Asked what an opposition MP could do for Nickel Belt, Gravelle said he had fought hard to amend the Canada Investment Act, as well as having eight private members bills on record, most of which involve the Canada Investment Act. He said he’s also done a good job in getting federal funding for the riding.

“You don’t have to be an MP for the Conservatives. As long as you do your work and work the people, you will get the money. It’ll come.”

He said he pushed hard to change Canada Investment Act. In 2006, Brazil-based Vale and Swiss-based Xstrata bought Inco and Falconbridge respectively.

“Before Parliament broke, we got (Industry Minister) Tony Clement to admit the Canada Investment Act needs some changes,” Gravelle said. “Just the fact he admitted, it is a win.”

Gravelle touted the NDP’s Canadian Mining Strategy initiative and was surprised to learn nobody had ever thought of a mining strategy for Canada. When the strategy was devised, Gravelle said everyone was encouraged to participate.

“We got some economists, labour leaders, members of the government of Manitoba, and we came up with our strategy. Mining is in many different provinces across Canada.”

The Mining Strategy would also involve better consultation of First Nations, Gravelle said.

“If you look here in Wahnapitae, First Nations are profiting from what’s going on in the mines. They’re involved, they want to be involved. Some of their band members are working for the company and are gainfully employed.”

Asked what would be different if the NDP had been in power during the Vale takeover and the strike, Gravelle said an NDP government would have done things differently, starting with the Investment Canada Act.

Gravelle said the NDP would not have stopped a Vale takeover, they would have made it “more transparent. We’re not against foreign ownership, we’re against foreign takeover. But at the end of the day, we want such a takeover to be of net benefit to Canada.”

As for the Vale strike, Gravelle said an NDP government would pass a law banning the use of replacement workers federally. However, Vale’s workers in Ontario are governed by provincial labour law, so it would up to Ontario to ban the use of replacement workers.

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