Coquitlam NOW August 1 2012

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Serving Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra since 1984

WEDNESDAY August 1, 2012

11

Coquitlam’s Caitlin Hill will spend 24 days travelling down the Fraser River.

Your source for local news, sports, opinion and entertainment: www.thenownews.com

Pension changes coming for MPs?

City targets pot shop Dispensary owner ‘shellshocked’ by ban

James Moore says reforms could begin as early as this fall

Jeremy Deutsch

Jeremy Deutsch

jdeutsch@thenownews.com

jdeutsch@thenownews.com

The clock is now ticking on the life of the first and only medical pot dispensary in the Tri-Cities. Following a marathon public hearing Monday night, Coquitlam city council voted unanimously to ban unlicensed marijuana dispensaries in the city and pass regulations on the location of federally licensed grow-ops. However, council agreed to write a letter asking the federal government to establish the regulatory framework for the production and dispensing of medical marijuana. Council was forced to grapple with the issue after the Coquitlam Natural Path Society, which runs a medical marijuana dispensary, opened up in the Maillardville area in June. The society’s founder and president, Christopher MacLeod, said he was shocked by council’s decision to essentially shut him down. “I want to stay within the law,” he told The NOW. “Right now I’m shell-shocked, I don’t know what my options are.” MacLeod said he understands the difficult position the city was put in because of the vagueness of the marijuana dispensary laws, but contends council made the  CONT. ON PAGE 8, see CITY.

Lisa King/NOW

SUMMER REFRESHMENT: Seven-year-old Kaitlen enjoys a blast of cool water at Rocky Point Park.

The posh pensions federal politicians have been collecting for years could soon become a little less lucrative. Port Moody-Westwood-Port Coquitlam MP James Moore indicated his government is prepared to bring forward pension reform this fall. Though he didn’t offer specific details, he suggested reforms would include changing the formula by which MPs and taxpayers contribute to the politicians’ pensions. Currently, taxpayers pay $24 for every $1 MPs contribute to their pension — a ratio Moore suggested is too generous compared to what everyday Canadians are getting. “We didn’t promise to do any of this, but we do think it is simply the right thing to do given the fiscal pressures in the country,” he told The NOW. Moore also noted the federal government has already made several changes to MP pensions, including changing the time when MPs can begin drawing a pension to 55. Previously, they could begin collecting it five years after leaving office. MPs have been maligned for their pensions, most notably by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF). The organization has repeatedly called for pension reform, and recently launched a billboard campaign to raise awareness of the issue. As part of its campaign, the CTF has calculated the pensions of MPs. The CTF calculated Moore, 36, would collect $89,881 in his first year of eligibility if he retired in 2015. The federation based its numbers on a formula that includes each MP living until  CONTINUED ON PAGE 4, see TAXPAYERS’.

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