The following letter to the editor is published in today's edition (Monday, Dec. 14th) of The Telegram. As a Newfoundland and Labrador MP, it was a challenge to truly love Canada. Oh, I always liked her enough, she’s a red-leafed beauty/hockey Goddess to look at, but dig deeper and there’s evidence of what the late Geoff Stirling once described as “economic terrorism.” Our people have suffered greatly because of the monumentally lopsided Upper Churchill contract — Quebec makes billions more than us. And Ottawa has never been prepared to step in, to stage an intervention, which only adds to the pain.  Most people aren’t aware, but the Upper Churchill contract expires next year (1972-2016). At that point, an automatic 25-year renewal clause will kick in. And, starting in 2016, Newfoundland and Labrador will make even less from the contract than it did in the first 44 years.  According to a 2009 Nalcor report, the purchase price under the power contract is one-quarte...

Ryan Cleary spent more than four years in Ottawa as Member of Parliament for St. John’s South-Mount Pearl, serving for all or part of that time as Chair of the Atlantic Caucus, Official Critic for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, and Official Critic for Post-Secondary Education. In addition, Ryan served on the House of Commons Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans, and Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. Over his term in office (2011-2015), Ryan rose more often during Question Period on NL-related issues than any other MP from the province.   TOP ISSUES IN THE COMMONS • Federal fisheries mismanagement . •  Search and rescue . •  Marine Atlantic . • Northern shrimp and Last-in, First-out policy . • Oil-spill response times. •  Pensions and seniors. •  Veterans . • Post-Secondary Education and student debt .  • The Canada EU free-trade deal and follow thr...

 I gave the following speech on Oct. 30 in St. John's. Good afternoon and thank you for coming. It’s been 11 days since the longest federal general election campaign in modern history, and the results have settled in. Canada is finally rid of Stephen Harper, and that’s a good thing … for Canada. A great thing for Newfoundland and Labrador. I’m proud — it was an honor — to have served for more than four years as part of Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition in Ottawa. The most effective Opposition in the Harper era … An Opposition that helped take Harper down. Day after day, month after month, year after year in the House of Commons we hammered Harper and his scandal-riddled administration for disrespecting Parliament … For changing the face of Canada into an image we no longer recognized — or liked. Newfoundland and Labrador suffered under Harper’s rule; he was no friend of ours. And Canadians — Newfoundlanders and Labradorians — saw the Trudea...

The Newfoundland fishing vessel Atlantic Charger sank off northern Labrador on Sept. 22th. All 9 crewmen were rescued by a factory-freezer trawler after spending almost 11 hours in immersion suits and a life raft, but questions were raised about the response of the military's Gander-based, search and rescue helicopters. The following questions were posed on Sept. 24th to the Canadian Coast Guard, which redirected them to the Canadian Forces. A response was finally received today, Oct. 13. Questions from MP Cleary's office: 1. Was a search and rescue Cormorant dispatched from Gander to respond to the distress call from the Atlantic Charger? 2. If so, what was the wheels-up time? What time did the SAR helicopter arrive on scene? 3. According to the owner of the Atlantic Charger, his crewmen were told  that it would take more than 5 hours to dispatch a Gander-based Cormorant. The owner himself says he was told by SAR offic...

I gave the following speech today (July 5 th ) at a national convention of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union of Canada at the Delta Hotel in downtown St. John’s. Good morning, And welcome to members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union of Canada. Welcome to St. John’s south-Mount Pearl. Even in the rain, drizzle, and fog, it’s the most beautiful riding in — not just Newfoundland and Labrador — but all of Canada. We have Cape Spear, the most easterly point in North America. Petty Harbour, as quaint a Newfoundland outport or fishing village as you’ll find. The Narrows — the sliver in the cliff that is the entrance to St. John’s harbor. And Cabot Tower, which has been draped in fog lately, but — trust me — it’s still there, even if you can’t see it. And that’s just a small taste of the breathtaking character you’re surrounded by. I didn’t even get to John Crosbie. John Crosbie — the political battle horse and long-...