ees Page 4, The Harald, Friday, March 6, 1981 fr TRHAACE-AELIM AT > daily herald General Office - 635-6357 Published by Circulation - 435-6357 Sterling Publishers Publisher — Garry Husak Ealtor — Pete Nadeau CLASS. ADS. . TERRACE - 635-4000 CIRCULATION. TERRACE .635-4357 Published every weekday af 3010 Kalum Street, Terrace, B.C. Aulnorized as second class mail. Registration number 1201. Postage paid in cash, return postage guaranteed. : NOTICE OF COPYRIGHT The Herald retains full, complete and sole copyright in + any advertisement produced and-or any editorial or photographic content published in the Herald. Reproduction is not permitted without the written permission of the Publisher. f 7 There may be ‘good news’ ‘To most Canadians, the federal government report charging that major oi] companies used “predatory and restrictive practices” io reduce ‘competition and increase fuel oil and gasoline prices likely means just one more consumer ripoff. But there may be some good:news to come out of the report if the Canadian Labor Congress and the Consumers’ Association of Caitada have anything to say about it. to The two organizations called Thursday for compensation to consumers for the extra $12 billion the companies are alleged to have charged for oil and gas products between 1958 and 1973, The government report, released Wednesday, said that if the money had been invested elsewhere it would now be worth $89 billion. The government, believing existing legislation is too weak to ensure convictions, has noi laid aay charges, but a public inquiry is to be held under the restrictive trade practices commission. The congress said each Canadian should be reimbursed for the ‘$12 billion overcharge, which works out to about $500 for every person in the country. “Considering that their net profit increases over 1980 will once again be considerable, these oil giants shouldn't be too troubled at the thought of having to e@itect such a minor refund to Canadian con- sumers,” congress president Dennis McDermott said in statement. “The federal government should take steps to enforce such a move.” McDermott sald the report bolstered the labor ment's case for Canadianization and eventual mediate strengthening of the Combines In- vestigation Act so that more direct action can be taken against the companies. The corisumers association also called for some form of compensation toconsumers, but research officer Steve Jelly agreed it was premature to expect compensation from the oil companies. “'T imow we won't see a cheque this year or next,”’ Jelly said. “We probably won't see any money ever ... but I think consumers have every right to expect compensation.” . He said the government must shoulder some of the blame because the report implicates it asa | culprit in benefiting through taxes paid by ol] com- panies. The law should be strengthened so ‘‘companies know that when they engage in a practice that is considered illegal and unacceptable and they are found out, they shauld pay back,”’ said Jelly. . Meanwhile, reaction from provincial politicians continued to trickle in, Saskatchewan Premier Allan Blakeney said regular business in the Com- mons should be set aside and new legislation in- troduced to protect Canadians from ripoffs by oi] companies. f Blakeney, who said he wad not alleging anything itlegal had taken place, added, “I entertain no doubt that the major oi] companies have increased their profits substantially over what they would have been if there was a competitive situation and not a semi-monopoly situation.” He suggested that new legislation would not be retroactive, but would protect consumers from similar action in the future. Quebec Energy Minisler Yves Berube said the report was a ploy by Ollawa to distract attention from its own policies. “There have been I don't know how many inquiries, trying to paint the petroleum industry as the bad guys,” Berube said. ‘The federal govern- ment is just doing this to make their own oi] policy more palatable.” Spokesmen for the major oil companies continued to deny any wrongdoing. omer | ‘nationalization of the oil industry. and called fér im-- ~ - : Th e world of Raeside YON DONT NEED AN CCOUNTANT,, YOU NEED AEST ; We ~ CONDO IN HAWAlL CARIBBEAN CRUISE. NEW COLOUR TV, ——~ 604: SAILBOAT GOLF CUB FEES TUNE-UP FOR PORSCHE: GATBLING HOLIDAY IN RENO hh Ciao CONDO IN FLORIDA 3 STOCK BROKERS FEES 12 CASES OF CHATEAY ROTHSCHILD 07 7— sos SS SS CONGRATULATIONS, MR. HANSON | YOU MANAGED TO GET THEM TO “y ‘LIFT THE PICKET UNE f ITWAS EASY, TAKE, T GOT BL. TEL. TO Doug HANSON?S A Davis ==" MWA vention. were anxious to be where the action was, _ but they didn't want to be part of the band. . It took & a couple oe oftries ~~ OTTAWA (CP) — In honor of the visit of us. _ President Ron-akd Reagan, they've painted the gothic-styled plywood structure surrounding . and entrance to Parliament. _ ‘ at ittoak a couple of tries before they gotit right . The temporary structure, erected during the 19 month, $3.5-million renovation to the Peace Tower ; originally was painted a beige color. But because it reflected light and would cause. problems for television cameras covering the ceremony, a coat of shocking mid-blue was slapped on. ; it stuck out like a sore thumb and the committee in charge did not approve. So now the whole thing, including a plywood canopy covering the stone stairway, has been hastily painted again — ina sombre, midnight blue. When Senator Healt MacQuarrle ran into a bureaucratic stone wall over the harvest of frish moss in Atlantic Canada, he treated the upper chamber to a flaming demonstration of towering imlignation. . ard made him doubly angry was that when he sought such information as an MP in 1978, he got it, That revived one of his pet beefs — that the Senate is treated differently than the Commons. ; ~ "Who is making that kind of invidious distine- “tion?” he thundered. What the Tory senator from Prince Edward Island wanled to know was the volume and value of Irish moss, a kind of sea weed, landed in the Atlantic provinces. He was told that some of the information was confidential, the rest unavailable. Railing against “bureaucratic effrontery,"" he said: ‘I donot like this flim-flam. this snow job, this disdain for a decently appointed and properly ac- credited member of the upper house of our néftional legislature.” ‘The question of Irish mass "may bea joke to some people, but it is no joke to fishermen in Prince © Edward Island,” who harvest the sea weed used in the manufacture of jellies, chocolate milk and other Boods. Senator Ray Perraull, government leader, agreed. Seeing no reason why such information should be “considered as a slate secret,” Perrault admitted - the reply “appears to lack the usual precision and detail.” He would get back to the source, heaven help him, “and convey to that source the eloquent words of the honorable senator.” Radio reporters covering the recent Tory,con- They were furious when they discovered space had been reserved for them on the convention floar directly in front of the blaring brass band that bel- ted out campaign songs and Dixieland numbers full blast. They were left shouting into microphones and straining to hear cue calls through their headsets. When some reporters complained, media co- ordinator Mi-chae) Krauss shrugged and said, “Well, you guys wanted to be close to the action.” When former external. affairs minister Flora MacDonald ran for the Tory leadership five years ago, she got a lot of media altention and her noisy supporters seemed legion, But when Lhe votes were counted she fell far short of predictions and the phenomenon became known as “the Flora syndrome." Buttonholed at the recent party convention that gave Joe Clark — affer much chanting and many standing ovations — a less-than-hearty en dorsement, a reporter asked if she thought Clark had been afflicted with the Flora syndrome. “You make me sound hke a communicable disease,"’ she cracked, ; Later, when MacDonald rose in the House to give her Iongawaited speech in the historic constitution Gebate, a strange and unsetiling clicking sound could be heard in the chamber. Reporters strained their necks over the press gallery railing to discover its source. There in the corner of the Liberal benches they spotted MP Yves Demers of the Montreal riding of Duvernay calmly clipping his fingernails. There's nothing quite so embarrassing as being muert of honor at a series of farewell recties and inners and then discoveri ’ outer. ring you aren’t going an- Such is the plight of Ambassador aleveki of Yugoslavia. Miko € He had all but packed his bags after a four: | 4 ‘ . ear stint here, when hegot word tostay put. * ‘It sbeen a bit embarrassing, bul it's one of those things,” he said philosophically, It now seems his move wou't come until later this year, Despite the efforts of such slick stick-handlers a: Sports Minister Gerald Regan, Senator Al Graham, former Liberal campaign manager, and Housing Minister Paul Cosgrove, the press gallery scribes defeated the pols 5-2 tn their annual hockey game. They don’t keep very good statistics but it's Generally agreed the MPs and senators hold the over-all lead in these encounters, LETTERS TO L THE EDITOR © Sir, On behalf of the Catholic Women’s League, I should like to thank you and your staff for the coverage you have given to our activities, including our Bazaar and Tea, during the past year. This publicity is very much appreciated, : Lesley Nelms Secretary