Liberal Jim Bradley's deception on gasoline prices

In Oily Grits I asked whether Liberal Premier of Ontario Dalton McGuinty was deceitful regarding his claims, when he was in opposition, that the Premier of Ontario has jurisdiction over the price of gasoline.

What about St. Catharines Liberal MPP Jim Bradley – what was he saying about gas prices then?

In opposition, Jim Bradley also was blustering - a lot - about alleged price gouging and price fixing, claims which even then-MP Liberal Walt Lastewka said were groundless.

As Richard Brennan reported in “Motorists gouged by gasoline companies” (St. Catharines Standard, Aug.22, 1997):

“Greedy oil companies are once again gouging Ontario motorists and tourists and the province sits back and does nothing, a veteran Liberal MPP says.

"As thousands of tourists visit Ontario this week, they will be confronted with the same circumstances facing all motorists in our province: gas price gouging by the major oil companies," said St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley in the legislature Thursday.

He said it might be time the province did something about runaway gasoline prices by holding a legislative inquiry.” (Gasoline prices in St. Catharines at the time of the above story (Aug.1997) were reported at 62-63 cents per litre – half of today’s prices under the Liberals!! Jim was outraged then, in 1997 – but why isn’t he outraged at the “runaway” gas prices now!??) The report continued: “Bradley urged Bill Saunderson, economic and tourism minister and a self-made millionaire, to talk to corporate pals about the high gasoline prices or "are you going to continue to apologize for the big oil bosses?"”

Yet, is Jim Bradley talking to HIS corporate pals today?!
Why is Jim acting as an apologist for the big oil bosses today?!
Have Jim's governing Grits bothered to reduce their gasoline taxes (now at 14.6 cents per litre), or lower their outrageously burdensome 8% PST?

(By the way: You gotta love the totally unnecessary use of 'self-made millionaire' in the above story as a populist attempt to denigrate Saunderson … well done! No bias there, eh?)

In response to Bradley's allegations, Andrew Lundy reported in “Gas prices not rigged, MP says”, (St. Catharines Standard , Aug.26, 1997):

“St. Catharines MP Walt Lastewka is deflecting a recent torrent of criticism over gasoline prices, saying there's no evidence the major oil companies are in cahoots to boost prices past the 60-cents-a- litre mark.
Lastewka, whose Liberal constituency office has received a string of angry phone calls in the past week, said yesterday federal studies looking at the oil industry have repeatedly "found no evidence to support allegations of price fixing, anti-competitive behavior or misleading advertising."”
Yet, since Ontario's Liberals gained power in 2003, have Bradley or McGuinty called for a legislative inquiry into the gas price increases which have occurred under their government??

Since 2003, Bradley has been Tourism minister, and now he’s Transport minister – yet what the hell has Bradley done about gas prices “as thousands of tourists visit Ontario” now, in 2008??!

In opposition, Bradley introduced a gas-price control bill, as the St. Catharines Standard reported in “Bradley aims bill at gas price gouging”, (Nov.19, 1999):

“St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley has introduced a private member's bill in the Ontario legislature in a bid to control gas pricing.
The Liberal's bill would prohibit large oil companies from undercutting small independent retailers, and calls for fines of up to $10,000 for violations.
Bradley challenged the government to give the bill quick passage.
"By protecting the independent retailer, this legislature, like some other provinces and many states in the U.S., can promote competition in the market and give consumers a break," he said.
Bradley said he introduced the legislation because of the government's failure to take meaningful action on price gouging.”


So, let's ask: where is Jim Bradley's bill now, in 2008??

Jim is now the Transportation Minister, in a majority Liberal government - and Jim has clearly ‘failed to take any meaningful action on price gouging’!! Why has Bradley's bill not resurfaced for nine years?

Is it because in reality, it was just a load of hot air all along?

When gasoline reached 80 cents a litre, the St. Catharines Standard (Feb.13, 2003) reported :

“Short-term wholesale prices at big refineries and terminals have also risen due to the cold winter and tight crude oil market. But St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley, who doesn't remember gas ever being this expensive, doesn't buy Baily's explanation.
"There's obvious price fixing going on," Bradley said. While the price of crude oil is a factor, "every (gas station) raises the price the same amount at the same time.”

Again we see Liberal MPP Bradley still angling for us to buy his unsubstantiated "price-fixing" allegations… six years after Liberal MP Lastewka’s 1997 earlier comments to the contrary!

If Liberal MP Lastewka was wrong, why then hasn’t Liberal MPP Bradley done anything about it for eleven years??
Did the “price-fixing” magically vanish when McGuinty's Liberals came to power, or is it rather that Bradley’s blustery accusations have vanished, and, that there never was any collusion? Was Bradley deceptive about price-fixing while in opposition, or is he being deceptive about it now, in government?

As for those trite Bradley-esque observations, such as ‘Bradley doesn’t remember gas ever being this expensive’…. oh, come on! So what?? In opposition, Jim was smugly outraged … but why isn’t anyone asking Jim Bradley if he remembers gas being this expensive TODAY – under his watch??
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In a Sept.16, 2005 St.Catharines Standard story written by Monique Beech ("Pump pain - Gas prices not falling as fast in Niagara as elsewhere") the Standard reporter did NOT EVEN MENTION local Liberal MPP Jim Bradley's name, nor Bradley's years of previous lies about 'price fixing' and about 'Liberal gas price control'. Bradley's previous positions on this specific issue were completely relevant to the story -  yet, Bradley was purposefully hidden in a Cone of Silence by his friends in the press!!
Are we to believe that this reporter just plain forgot to talk with Ole Jimmy about any of that!!hahaha!!!!
Beech reported that the average gasoline price in Niagara region was about 1.10 per litre, but it varied - in Beamsville it was 1.02. Beech also reported statistics that in 2004, the average price in the city of St.Catharines was 78.9. So, even though gasoline prices went up over 20 cents per litre during the year - during Liberal MPP Jim Bradley's watch - reporter Beech and the St.Catharines Standard protected Jim Bradley from scrutiny.
WHY??? (Why? Because in 2005, Jim Bradley and his Liberals were now in government, that's WHY. Details of Bradley's BS were no longer important!)
The Standard made no mention at all regarding Bradley's gasoline price lies in this Sept.16, 2005 story  - yet, in their earlier Feb.13, 2003 story, the Standard made damn sure to report how their best boy Bradley "doesn’t remember gas ever being this expensive" !!!
WHY was Bradley trotted out for one story, but not another? (Why? Because in 2003, Jim Bradley was in opposition, and the Standard was helping out in his re-election campaign! Anything to make Liberal Jimmy look good.)
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