Translink Wins Lifetime Taxpayer Waste Teddy Award

[Anonymous]

For those Vancouverites even thinking of voting yes in the upcoming referendum....you need your fucking heads examined!!

OTTAWA — Former federal cabinet minister and London, Ont., mayor Joe Fontana has been named recipient of an award he may not want to accept.



Fontana is the winner of the 2015 federal Teddy Waste Award, a dubious honour bestowed on individuals and governments each year by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.



The former Liberal MP was convicted last June of breach of trust, fraud and uttering forged documents after a contract was altered for his son's 2005 wedding and Fontana submitted the $1,700 invoice to the House of Commons for reimbursement, claiming it was for a function with the federal finance minister.



While $1,700 is hardly the largest amount of money misspent by a Canadian politician, the federation's national director, Aaron Wudrick, said the awards — symbolized by gilded china pigs — are subjective.



And the most outrageous part, said Wudrick, is that, despite being convicted of fraud, Fontana continues to collect his pension.



"Despite intentionally forging documents to defraud taxpayers, Fontana retains his annual $122,000 MP pension, courtesy of the taxpayer," Wudrick told an Ottawa news conference.



Ontario's Ministry of Energy got the nod for the provincial Teddy for spending $1 billion to install 4.8 million so-called smart meters in homes in a program that has been beset with troubles.



The province's auditor general has found cost overruns that could double the initial price. Hundreds of thousands of the electronically monitored power-consumption meters have been unable to transmit data. Several dozen have caught fire.



Halifax councillor Brad Johns won the municipal award for buying a $25,000 robotic Christmas tree.



And the federation gave its Lifetime Achievement Award to Vancouver's TransLink, for more than a decade of waste and tax hikes.



The Teddy is named after Ted Weatherill, a former federal bureaucrat who was fired in 1999 for submitting lavish expense claims, including a $700 lunch for two.



Wudrick acknowledged Wednesday that government waste in Canada appears to be endless and it's doubtful that the federation's annual awards have stopped much, if any, of it, from happening.



But shining a spotlight on waste keeps politicians and bureaucrats on their toes, he said.



"We're tough on all government waste, but sometimes the best way to strike a nerve is to tell some of the most absurd stories," said Wudrick.



"Sadly, the capacity for government to dream up new ways to waste money seems infinite."



Other nominees included Public Works and Government Services Canada for spending $65,000 to repurchase a bulldozer it had confiscated and sold for just over $5,500, rather than destroying it as originally ordered by a court. Eventually, the bulldozer was destroyed anyway.



Former Alberta Premier Alison Redford was also cited for the remodelling of a penthouse apartment. Just the plans for the alterations, which included an $832,000 Zamboni storage shed and skating rink that was never built, cost the province's taxpayers $173,000.

http://www.theprovince.com/news/TransLink+earns+Lifetime+Achievement+Award+decade+waste/10861233/story.html">http://www.theprovince.com/news/TransLi ... story.html">http://www.theprovince.com/news/TransLink+earns+Lifetime+Achievement+Award+decade+waste/10861233/story.html

[Anonymous]

Check the fucking waste of this corrupt organization.

[Gary Oak]

Homoero will vote yes. ac_drinks    ac_drinks

[Anonymous]

Ontario should be given honorable mention for Liberals green energy boondoggles.

[Anonymous]

For those Vancouverites even thinking of voting yes in the upcoming referendum....you need your fucking heads examined!!

OTTAWA — Former federal cabinet minister and London, Ont., mayor Joe Fontana has been named recipient of an award he may not want to accept.



Fontana is the winner of the 2015 federal Teddy Waste Award, a dubious honour bestowed on individuals and governments each year by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.



The former Liberal MP was convicted last June of breach of trust, fraud and uttering forged documents after a contract was altered for his son's 2005 wedding and Fontana submitted the $1,700 invoice to the House of Commons for reimbursement, claiming it was for a function with the federal finance minister.



While $1,700 is hardly the largest amount of money misspent by a Canadian politician, the federation's national director, Aaron Wudrick, said the awards — symbolized by gilded china pigs — are subjective.



And the most outrageous part, said Wudrick, is that, despite being convicted of fraud, Fontana continues to collect his pension.



"Despite intentionally forging documents to defraud taxpayers, Fontana retains his annual $122,000 MP pension, courtesy of the taxpayer," Wudrick told an Ottawa news conference.



Ontario's Ministry of Energy got the nod for the provincial Teddy for spending $1 billion to install 4.8 million so-called smart meters in homes in a program that has been beset with troubles.



The province's auditor general has found cost overruns that could double the initial price. Hundreds of thousands of the electronically monitored power-consumption meters have been unable to transmit data. Several dozen have caught fire.



Halifax councillor Brad Johns won the municipal award for buying a $25,000 robotic Christmas tree.



And the federation gave its Lifetime Achievement Award to Vancouver's TransLink, for more than a decade of waste and tax hikes.



The Teddy is named after Ted Weatherill, a former federal bureaucrat who was fired in 1999 for submitting lavish expense claims, including a $700 lunch for two.



Wudrick acknowledged Wednesday that government waste in Canada appears to be endless and it's doubtful that the federation's annual awards have stopped much, if any, of it, from happening.



But shining a spotlight on waste keeps politicians and bureaucrats on their toes, he said.



"We're tough on all government waste, but sometimes the best way to strike a nerve is to tell some of the most absurd stories," said Wudrick.



"Sadly, the capacity for government to dream up new ways to waste money seems infinite."



Other nominees included Public Works and Government Services Canada for spending $65,000 to repurchase a bulldozer it had confiscated and sold for just over $5,500, rather than destroying it as originally ordered by a court. Eventually, the bulldozer was destroyed anyway.



Former Alberta Premier Alison Redford was also cited for the remodelling of a penthouse apartment. Just the plans for the alterations, which included an $832,000 Zamboni storage shed and skating rink that was never built, cost the province's taxpayers $173,000.

http://www.theprovince.com/news/TransLink+earns+Lifetime+Achievement+Award+decade+waste/10861233/story.html">http://www.theprovince.com/news/TransLi ... story.html">http://www.theprovince.com/news/TransLink+earns+Lifetime+Achievement+Award+decade+waste/10861233/story.html

What referendum?

[Anonymous]

^You can read about it here.

http://www.notranslinktax.ca/">http://www.notranslinktax.ca/

TransLink backers and most of the region's mayors are telling local voters to say yes to a proposed 0.5% increase to the provincial sales tax, to be applied in the Metro Vancouver region only. That's what residents are voting on.



Money raised over 10 years — an estimated $2.5 billion, under the proposed plan — will be deposited into a special account, and will help fund new transit improvements, including underground rapid transit in Vancouver, a bridge connecting Surrey to New Westminster, light rail in Surrey, more buses and other infrastructure, including bicycle lanes.





Metro Vancouver's proposed transit improvements will cost an estimated $7.5 billion over 10 years. It's money TransLink doesn't have; the corporation is already $5 billion in debt and barely meets its annual operating costs with existing fares and various tax-funded mechanisms.



Even assuming TransLink can raise $2.5 billion over 10 years with the proposed transit tax, the balance of the investment — $5 billion — will have to come from provincial and federal coffers. No government politician in Victoria or Ottawa has made any funding pledges — an important point missing from the "Yes" side persuasion campaign.



The yes side has been spending millions of $$ to convince metro Vancouver voters that the tax hike will be good for them. Translink is buying votes with the taxpayer's money. What a fucking scam.

[Lance Leftardashian]

I URGE EVERYONE ELIGIBLE TO CAST A YES VOTE.

[Anonymous]

^Nice troll effort  copying Gay Bob's trolling on VF. ac_rollseyes

[Anonymous]

^You can read about it here.

http://www.notranslinktax.ca/">http://www.notranslinktax.ca/

TransLink backers and most of the region's mayors are telling local voters to say yes to a proposed 0.5% increase to the provincial sales tax, to be applied in the Metro Vancouver region only. That's what residents are voting on.



Money raised over 10 years — an estimated $2.5 billion, under the proposed plan — will be deposited into a special account, and will help fund new transit improvements, including underground rapid transit in Vancouver, a bridge connecting Surrey to New Westminster, light rail in Surrey, more buses and other infrastructure, including bicycle lanes.





Metro Vancouver's proposed transit improvements will cost an estimated $7.5 billion over 10 years. It's money TransLink doesn't have; the corporation is already $5 billion in debt and barely meets its annual operating costs with existing fares and various tax-funded mechanisms.



Even assuming TransLink can raise $2.5 billion over 10 years with the proposed transit tax, the balance of the investment — $5 billion — will have to come from provincial and federal coffers. No government politician in Victoria or Ottawa has made any funding pledges — an important point missing from the "Yes" side persuasion campaign.



The yes side has been spending millions of $$ to convince metro Vancouver voters that the tax hike will be good for them. Translink is buying votes with the taxpayer's money. What a fucking scam.

You are giving me the biased explanation Shen Li..



I would assume the other side is equally biased too.

 ac_umm

[Anonymous]

You are giving me the biased explanation Shen Li.

No, it's the truth. A top heavy organization that wins the lifetime achievement award for wasting the people's money wants more money because this time they will do the right thing. Like getting Bernie Madoff to handle your investment portfolio.



They use all the typical doom and gloom exaggerations if they do not get more of your cash. Even if they didn't waste people's money this time, their numbers about what will happen if they don't get more of everyone's $$ are laughable



The GVRD should have a third option on the referendum; lowering the amount of tax money spent on Translink!!

That's the one I would vote for if I lived in that armpit of a city. ac_dance

[Anonymous]

You are giving me the biased explanation Shen Li.

No, it's the truth. A top heavy organization that wins the lifetime achievement award for wasting the people's money wants more money because this time they will do the right thing. Like getting Bernie Madoff to handle your investment portfolio.



They use all the typical doom and gloom exaggerations if they do not get more of your cash. Even if they didn't waste people's money this time, their numbers about what will happen if they don't get more of everyone's $$ are laughable



The GVRD should have a third option on the referendum; lowering the amount of tax money spent on Translink!!

That's the one I would vote for if I lived in that armpit of a city. ac_dance

Something should be done about congestion in Vancouver and Calgary too.

[Anonymous]

You are giving me the biased explanation Shen Li.

No, it's the truth. A top heavy organization that wins the lifetime achievement award for wasting the people's money wants more money because this time they will do the right thing. Like getting Bernie Madoff to handle your investment portfolio.



They use all the typical doom and gloom exaggerations if they do not get more of your cash. Even if they didn't waste people's money this time, their numbers about what will happen if they don't get more of everyone's $$ are laughable



The GVRD should have a third option on the referendum; lowering the amount of tax money spent on Translink!!

That's the one I would vote for if I lived in that armpit of a city. ac_dance

Something should be done about congestion in Vancouver and Calgary too.

Give it to a corrupt government entity to waste. ac_lmfao

[Corp. Taxes Suck]

Vancouverites should vote fucking NO to this referendum. I can't believe the fucking nerve of Translink to even ask us to give them more money. I would trust a heroin addict over those fraudulent slimebags.