Getting the boot has its good points MLA Paul Nettleton learning to like life as independent by MARK NIELSEN Citizen staff Now that he’s been ousted from the B.C. Liberal caucus, Prince George-Omineca MLA Paul Nettleton says he’ll be able to devote [more attention to constituents’ concerns — and that he’ll have more help in that regard. Along with the $7,000 per month plus rent he already receives to run his constituency offices, he is now also entitled to an additional $10,000 per month because he’s an independent MLA, with which he can hire two assistants in Victoria. ; Nettleton was kicked out of caucus last Hiesday for accusing the government of a hidden agenda to privatized B.C. Hydro. Prior to his expulsion, Netdeton had to share one assistant with four other MLAs in Victoria. “It’s a huge improvement,” Nettleton said of I his new situation. “Fm really looking forward to having good staff people in Victoria, and that’ll take some of the pressure, as well, off of particularly my Prince George office which has just been phenomenally busy.” Nettleton said Sunday that plenty of interest in the positions has already been expressed. “Fve had lots of inquiries from very-qualified people who want to work for me in Victoria,” he I said. “So m certainly be able to hire the best.” Nettleton said he keep a sharp eye out for any retribution that the government may impose on Prince George-Omineca in light of his expulsion. NETTLETON “I believe the government will have to be very sensitive as to how they treat my constituents as they work through constituency files. They’ll also have to be very sensitive in terms of how they treat organizations who are looking for funding for various programs, because clearly there will be a lot of public scrutiny by way of the media.” If there is a downside, Nettleton said he'll miss the interaction with his colleagues. However, he said he will be able to give more time to his constituents. “My focus will certainly be on representing my constituents, working hard for them and effectively,” he said. “So in that sense, it’s business as usual with a lot of additional help.” Nettleton said that he’s not surprised that the local B.C. Liberal constituency association has announced they'll seek a new candidate for the next provincial election. MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2002 80 CENTS (HOME DELIVERED: 54 CENTS A DAY) E-Mail address: news@princegeorgecitizen.com Our Web site: http^/www^rinc^eorgecrtizen.com ELVIS LIVES — Former world champion Elvis Stojko gets sbme air-time during his performance Sunday night at the Multiplex. Stojko and friends such as Brian Orser, Elizabeth Manley, Surya Bonaly, Rudy Galindo and Isabelle Brasseur and Lloyd Eisler put on a dazzling display of music, lights, flips and jumps as part of SK8. More than 4,000 skating fans took in the event. Annie’s Mailbox .............17 Bridge.......................22 City, B.C. ... 3,5,13,15,16,28 Classified................20-23 Comics.......................18 Coming Events..............2,28 Crossword....................18 Entertainment.............18,19 Horoscope....................22 Lotteries....................15 Lifestyles.............15,17,25 Nation......................6,7 Sports.....................8-12 Television ..................19 World........................14 58307 " 00100 High today: - 4 Low tonight: - 8 Details page 2 PRINCE GEORGE Citizen Serving the Central Interior since 1916 Citizen staff Regional district directors have been told that thanks to a $1,054 million unique geographical supplement or sparseness grant they have time to work with the school board trustees to come up with a way to keep rural schools open. School board trustee Lyn Hall said directors were told the supplement will last for the three-year budget cycle or until the end of the 2004-05 school year. “We’ve got some time now, that’s the key,” he said. “It’s certainly not where we were three months ago where the regional district felt we were really in a time crunch.” Hall said that the Ministry of Education will be consulted on the nuances of a proposal that the regional district is making to keep the schools open. Neither he nor regional district director Betty Abbs were willing to give the details. “Our goal is to work out a long-term solution and to do it efficiently,” Abbs said. Hall said it was the first time that elected officials from both bodies met on the issue. The supplement is not new money but rather is part of the existing funding envelope. It was discovered in a review of a 60-page funding formula document from the Ministry of Education — amounting to an obscure brief line that has been out since new funding formulas were announced in February. Councillor just doing what his family does best by MARK NIELSEN Citizen staff For Cliff Dezell, politics runs in the family. His father, Garvin, was a mayor for a total of 14 years over the 1950s and 1960s and his grandfather was on the village council in Vanderhoof. In fact, since they immigrated to Canada from Northern Ireland just before 1800, Dezell said that as far as he can tell 1954 to 1960 is the only period when someone on his father’s side of the family was not in office somewhere. So when Dezell is sworn in as councillor next Monday, it will not only mark his 24th year in local politics but also the continuation of a family tradition. “Politics is what we do,” he said. “We’ve never made much money at it, but it’s kind of the family business." For Dezell it all began when he was elected to school board in 1978 after getting involved in the community schools movement that was popular at the time. When the province took away the school district’s power to levy taxes, Dezell did not run in 1982 and was elected to dty council in 1983. He remained on dty council for seven years, but stepped down in 1990 when the demands of his job as an administrator at Prince George Regional Hospital became overwhelming as the province sought to regionalize health governance. “The simple fact is I had lost my sense of humour and I was starting to get irritated with everyone around me, so I didn’t run,” he said. But in 1993 he was back on council. “TWo years off and I was recharged, he said. Strange as it may seem, Dezell can’t point to a knack for campaigning as the reason for his political longevity; in contrast to his father and mother, Dezell said he’s not the gregarious type but is, by nature, fairly reserved which would seem to make politics a funny business to be in. “But oddly enough, most of the politicians I know tend to be shy and introspective and the public persona is something we’ve learned,” he said. What he does like about campaigning is dealing with issues, particularly in all-candidate forums. “I wish they were longer and I had more time to talk about things. I wish that they were structured differently so that there was debate between the candidates; I love to argue and debate things,” he said. In the time since he first sat on council, Dezell said the role that local government plays has grown. The dty used to be concerned almost exclusively with roads, sewer and water, fire protection and policing and could rely on revenue from property taxes to cover the costs; now council is also caught up in quality-of-life issues like affordable housing. With those added responsibilities, Dezell said dties need to secure other sources of revenue like getting a share of the fuel tax revenue from the federal government. “If dties are really the economic drivers of the nation, and I think they are, and cities are expected to provide all these services to the people who live in them, then we’ve got to find ways of affording them," he said. Economic development tops Dezell’s list of goals, particularly levering federal money to develop the Northwest Transportation Corridor, linking Winnipeg to Prince Rupert. Dezell said that not only is Prince Rupert 30 hours dos-er to Asia than the Port of Vancouver for shipping, but access by rail and road to Chicago is quicker through Winnipeg than through Vancouver. DEZELL GREY CUP Rural schools saved, for now HEATHER SADLER JENKINS A W Y E R 565-8000 www.hsjlawyers.com 700 - 550 Victoria Street, Prince George Cornered by Baldwin are splitting up. Four fireplaces and a wine cellar. Better act quick, before they make up.’ Buying or Selling a Business? Serving your legal needs for over 30 years. Norm McDonald Peter Warner,Q.C. • AFRAID OF LAWYERS’ FEES? • FEE QUOTES UP FRONT • EFFECTIVE RESULTS SWITCHBOARD: 562-2441 CLASSIFIED: 562-6666 _______________________ READER SALES: 562-3301 __________i , .______________ 058307001008