Mississauga News endorses Charles Sousa for Ontario Liberal Leader, says his private sector experience is "invaluable"

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A great endorsement from the major paper of Ontario's third largest city!

It’s time to put Charles in charge.

We endorse Sousa, the 54-year-old MPP for Mississauga South who has held three Cabinet posts since first being elected in 2007. He has a 20-year background in banking that could prove invaluable in dealing with Ontario’s financial challenges.

Read more here!

Youth support from across Ontario for Charles Sousa!

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I remember when I first started volunteering for Charles Sousa back in 2007. Charles had just been nominated as the Liberal candidate for the fall general election, following the departure of Tim Peterson from the Liberal caucus. Charles was a first time candidate running in a riding which had never voted Liberal provincially before 2003 against an incumbent the PC's were treating as a star candidate. I've seen as Charles' campaign has grown from his kitchen table and the back of his van to a province wide effort, and that's why I'm so proud to stand with Young Liberals from across Ontario who Charles has inspired to get involved.

Below is the release on Charles' youth support. I encourage you to share it across Twitter and Facebook if you support Charles.

http://www.votesousa.ca/youth-support

In the week leading up to the Ontario Liberal Party’s Leadership Convention on January 25^th, Sousa’s campaign continues to build with Sousa’s message of real renewal which has been resonating with youth from across the province.

“I am very grateful to have the support of so many engaged young people”, said Sousa. “Their enthusiasm and commitment to our party and our province is vital and extremely encouraging. Without them, there is no real renewal.”

With the opposition raising the spectre of another provincial election so soon after the last one, Sousa’s ability to lead the party is top of mind for many Liberals.

“Charles is a man I can see as Premier of Ontario, and someone I can see standing up there, defending our record against Horwath and Hudak. I think he is the right choice for these times and I am proud to support him,” said Roy Sengupta, Member of the Ottawa Centre Provincial Liberal Association.

His focus on creating jobs and growing the economy is resonating strongly with many students and recent graduates.

“Charles is running to be Ontario’s “Jobs Premier” and his plan to create and save jobs will greatly benefit recent university and college graduates like me,” said Tyler Anderson, studying at York University.

“He had me at ‘Jobs’,” added Abdullah Sherif, a Young Liberal from Scarborough Centre.

For others, it’s his social conscience and work at the community level that convinced them that Sousa is the right candidate for Premier.

“Charles inspires me to be a better person and to continue to get involved within the community. His loyalty to the people and his dedication to make a difference is why I have chosen to support him,” said Jessica Cabral, a Young Liberal from Mississauga-Brampton South.

Warren Bradley Clarke, VP Federal of the UTM Liberals said “Charles is the answer. His devotion, kind heart and strength are what distinguish him from the rest. ”

All agree that his leadership style and open, honest and inclusive campaign were key in their decision to support Sousa.

“I’ve been deeply impressed with the ideas-oriented and forward-looking campaign Charles has run. As a lifelong Mississauga resident I know how hard Charles has worked to represent his community and know that the whole province will benefit from his enthusiasm and determination,” said Kevin Draper, VP of the Mississauga East-Cooksville Federal Liberal Association and Director of the Trinity-Spadina Provincial Liberal Association.

“Charles is a great listener and great leader. I have complete confidence in his abilities to put this province on the track to great success,” said Brian Santos, Past President of the Cambridge Young Liberals.

Many of today’s endorsements come from delegates to the Ontario Liberal Party’s upcoming leadership convention in Toronto on the weekend of the 25^th-27^th.

Sousa is running to be Ontario’s Jobs Premier and has proposed several concrete steps we can take to create jobs now. For more information about his plan or to contact his campaign, visit www.votesousa.ca.

Charles Sousa: Why I'm running

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Got 60 seconds? Peep this video of Charles talking about why he is in the race for Ontario Liberal Party leader and why he wants to be your jobs Premier!

"Sousa sounded and looked very much like a man who would be comfortable as the next premier of the province."

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This article is a couple days old now, but I wanted to post it to show the extremely positive reception Charles received talking to local business leaders in Mississauga, while also outlining his vision to create jobs and grow the economy to protect our gains in health care and education.

Ontario's leaders must govern by addressing the long-term needs of the province, not by "just looking at the next election cycle," Mississauga South Liberal MPP Charles Sousa told the Mississauga Board of Trade this morning...

The second-term MPP pressed his home field advantage in front of an attentive audience at the Mississauga International Centre by outlining his policies to improve life in the GTA, which he said was burdened by both traffic gridlock and "political gridlock."

"It's all about growing the economy and jobs," the MPP said. "That will allow us to pay for the things that really matter — health care and education." 
Instead of headlines bemoaning the fact that traffic in the GTA is worse than it is in Los Angeles, Sousa said he wants to write a new economic story by implementing policies to create jobs and curb gridlock.
He outlined a five-point GTA plan that he claimed will put the 416 and 905 regions back on the road to prosperity.
"We can remove one complete layer of decision-making" by making Metrolinx responsible for MiWay, the TTC and all local transit systems in the GTA, he suggested.

It's finally time to build the high-speed rail connection from Windsor to Quebec City that every provincial government has talked about — but none has acted on — the Mississauga native said.
"It's time for action and we need to start with the Hamilton to Toronto and Toronto to Oshawa sections," he said.
Ontario must make significant long-term capital investments in high speed rail now because otherwise the economic benefit will be lost to the U.S., which is also looking at the prospect...

The former Labour and Immigration minister said the new policy he launched several weeks ago to attract more immigrants to Ontario is critical to meeting the province's future labour needs. "In the future 100 per cent of the net jobs will be filled by newcomers to Ontario."
Another long-term problem that has never been addressed, despite ongoing promises from every party, is the Ontario Condominium Act. Sousa promised "immediate reform” of the legislation to give owners a greater voice on condo boards and to force the licensing of condo managers.

Investing in post-secondary education in times of a down economy, such as the one we are in now, will pay huge dividends down the road as the economy recovers, argued the 54-year-old graduate of Gordon Graydon Secondary School.

He urged approval of a new university campus in neighbouring Milton, Ontario's fastest-growing municipality, as soon as possible. 
"We have the funding. We need to act,” he said.
At ease in front of the friendly MBOT audience, Sousa sounded and looked very much like a man who would be comfortable as the next premier of the province.
"We do have a strong foundation in this province  but we need to work together," he concluded. "It's not about the future of anyone's political stripe, it's about the future of the province." 

Check out the Charles Sousa plan for Northern Ontario!

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A great week for the Charles Sousa campaign! After solid performances in the all candidates debates, and fantastic youth turnout at our pub night and the UTM Winterfest, Charles Sousa has rolled out his plan for Northern Ontario in the run up to the Northern region leadership debate tomorrow. Take a look!

Ontario Liberal leadership candidate, Charles Sousa, has the right plan to create jobs for northern families.

His vision for the North will mean accelerated job creation, better transit and more local decision making.

His plan has three points:

1. Further develop the mining sector and speed up the Ring of Fire to create jobs for northern families.

The Ring of Fire is one of the largest chromite deposits in the world, offering enormous untapped potential to create jobs for northern families and economic benefit for all of Ontario. To fast-track development in the area, Sousa will:

• Work with investors to reach deals that create jobs and provide new net returns for Ontario in the North;
• Invest better transportation systems to the North;
• Expand energy transmission capacity; and
• Engage First Nations partners so that they share and benefit from job creation and economic stimulus.

“We need to act now to create these jobs. Developing the Ring of Fire will be my top priority for the North,” said Sousa.

2. Support a reliable and sustainable ONTC to connect northern communities.

The recent decision to divest the ONTC has many communities concerned about how they’ll travel between communities. “Transit is vital to continued growth and important to northern families. That’s why I am committed to a sustainable, reliable ONTC that connects the North and supports jobs,” said Sousa.

3. Act upon local input into decision-making and build municipal partnerships.

Like other regions of the province, people in the North need to know that their input is valued and their priorities will be acted upon. “Under my leadership, local solutions will come from local input, because not all good ideas come from the Premier’s office.”

Sousa is running to be Ontario’s Jobs Premier and has already put forward several concrete ways to create jobs now. More information is available online at www.votesousa.ca.

Charles Sousa wants all of Ontario working: Take a look at his GTA and rural policies

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With today being the "Day of Debates" (an all candidates luncheon at the Canadian Club and a special taping of The Agenda with Steve Paikin) here is some light reading material for you on Charles Sousa's bold new ideas to get rural Ontario and the GTA both working to create jobs and improve the quality of life for residents.

Here is the Sousa Plan to Create Jobs in Small Town and Rural Ontario

1. Acting upon local input into decision-making and building municipal partnerships;

1. Strongly supporting industries like auto, primary & secondary manufacturing and food processing;

1. Providing industry with the right tools to create jobs by promoting innovation and attracting investment; and

1. Supporting small businesses by making access to the Southwestern and Eastern Ontario Development Funds easier, simpler and permanent.

“As a party and as a government, we need to do a better job of listening to local voices,” said Sousa. “People need to know that we take their concerns seriously and are ready to act on them. That’s why listening is the starting point of my plan.”

Sousa, who is running to be Ontario’s Jobs Premier, has put the main focus of his plan for small town and rural Ontario on creating jobs.

Like all Ontario families, people in Southwestern and Eastern Ontario want the government to be focussed on creating jobs in their communities. That’s why Sousa is committed to maintaining strong support for the auto and manufacturing industries and is committed to working with business to create jobs.

His plan to improve access to the Southwestern and Eastern Ontario Development Funds for small businesses will help entrepreneurs to grow their companies and create jobs.

“Making it easier for small businesses to access the funds they need to succeed is the right thing to do,” said Sousa.

To date, the Eastern Ontario Development Fund has created $595M in private sector investment and helped create or retain 13,200 jobs. Sousa plans on building off of this success by making the funds more accessible to rural and small town businesses.

“The funds have worked well for big employers, but Main Street should be benefiting as well. That’s why I’ll make it permanent, bring clarity to the program and make it much easier to access.”

And here is Charles' newly released, hot off the presses plan To Take Action Now To Deal With GTA Challenges

1. Make Metrolinx responsible for the TTC

Gridlock –both literally and politically – is a huge problem for Toronto. By making Metrolinx responsible for the TTC, we can start building transit now, so we’re not having the same conversations ten years from now. “We’re two years behind schedule because of political gridlock,” Sousa said.

2. Site a new university campus in Milton

Milton is the fastest growing city in Canada and we need to take action now to keep up. A new campus in Milton will help our students prepare to succeed and boost the local economy. “We have the funding.  We need to act,” Sousa said.

3. Take immediate action to reform the Condo Act

Ontario has been looking at reforming the condo act for years, and private members’ bills on the issues have previously passed second reading in the legislature.

Within 90 days of becoming Premier, Sousa would introduce legislation to reform the Condo Act. “We have had a lot of input.  We need to act,” Sousa said

4. Make immigration work better for Ontario

By increasing the number of provincial nominees, and pushing the federal government to deliver their fair share, we can take full advantage of the skills that new immigrants have, and make sure that the GTA remains a magnet for economic immigrants around the world. “We need immigration to work for Ontario,” Sousa said.

“We all know that the GTA is a world-class region that is facing significant challenges over the next decade,” said Sousa. “We need comprehensive solutions to address these challenges, and we need to start moving now.”

Sousa is running to be Ontario’s Jobs Premier and has already proposed several concrete steps we can take to create jobs now.

Charles Sousa brings out bold new ideas for Ontario Liberal renewal

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Today Charles Sousa continued to roll out bold new policies to re-engage our membership, support our unheld ridings, and empower our riding associations.

In particular, I'm a big fan of Charles committing to make it easier for youth to join the party online, helping unheld ridings keep more of their money, and supporting more free votes and private members bills.

Take a closer look at: http://www.votesousa.ca/renewal

4 days left to sign up to support a jobs Premier! Here's why you should support Charles.

http://www.votesousa.ca/join-us/

Only a few days remain to sign up to join the Ontario Liberal Party and have your say in picking Ontario's next Premier. If you want to see a jobs Premier with real world business experience and a proven record of winning new voters to the Liberal Party, make sure to sign up!

Here's why Charles is the best candidate to lead Ontario and create jobs:

After a rough recession, Ontario families and companies did their part


to ensure Ontario has seen job creation and economic growth. In the

last provincial election, the Ontario Liberal Party was re-elected in

large part due to a strong focus on a real plan to create jobs and

grow the economy in order to protect investments in education and

healthcare. If Ontario Liberals want to be successful in the next

election, we have to be very aware that Ontario families want real

plans backed up with real experience, not untested schemes to protect

the things that matter to them.



With his strong real world experience in the private sector, and

legislative experience promoting new policies and ideas to create

growth and protect investments, Charles Sousa is the best candidate to

convince Ontario families to renew their contract with our party and

grow the economy in bold new directions.



Charles is no career politician. He has decades of experience working

in the private sector, from owning his own financial services business

that helped small business to serving as Director of Business

Development - Commercial Financial Services, Director of Government &

Community Affairs and Senior Manager of Marketing for Royal Bank of

Canada. He’s been a member of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, a

Director with the American Chamber of Commerce Ontario, a Member of

the Toronto Board of Trade, a Director with the International Chamber

of Commerce, Executive Director of the European Union Chamber of

Commerce in Toronto, and President of the Federation of Portuguese

Canadian Business & Professionals. Charles offers more hands-on

experience on the economy and jobs than any other candidate for

Liberal leader, and families deserve a leader with real world

experience at creating jobs and who understands what kind of ideas and

policies.



Since his arrival at Queen’s Park only 5 years ago, Charles has been a

champion of bold new ideas to grow the economy and stand up for

Ontario families. As Minister of Immigration and Minister responsible

for the Pan-Am Games, he managed one of the most complex and important

portfolios to attract new Canadians, and introduced Ontario’s first

immigration strategy to make Ontario’s newcomers an even more

important part of our provincial economy. A New Direction: Ontario’s

Immigration Strategy is crucial to help build a strong economy in our

province. The strategy focuses on bringing skilled immigrants and

their families to Ontario, in the numbers we need. Charles is standing

up to the Harper Conservatives to provide Ontario with an expanded

role in economic immigrant selection. Ontario needs to increase the

proportion of economic immigrants coming to Ontario to 70 per cent and

it needs to increase our nominations under the Provincial Nominee

Program to 5,000 from 1,000 – to help build a skilled labour force. It

sets a path so Ontario can attract the highly skilled immigrants and

investors that we need to fuel economic growth and help build stronger

communities.



As Minister of Labour, Charles led the largest overhaul of Ontario’s

occupational health and safety system in 30 years. Bill 160, The

Occupational Health and Safety Statute Law Amendment Act was passed in

May 2011 which, among other things, includes the creation of a Chief

Prevention Officer and a new prevention council.

Charles also introduced and received unanimous support for Bill 181,

the Fire Protection and Prevention Amendment Act, 2011.This

legislation addresses mandatory retirement for firefighters and

provides for the duty of fair representation.



Even before entering cabinet, Chares was effective as Parliamentary

Assistant to the Minister of Economic Development & Trade and

Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Government & Consumer

Services, introducing private members bill’s and motions focused on

the economy and financial services which were adopted by the

government. Charles was instrumental in passing new consumer

protection legislation to regulate payday lenders. The Payday Loans

Act, 2008 gives the government the ability to cap the total cost of

borrowing and bans predatory lending practices. Charles’ private

member’s resolution calling on the Ministry of Education to include

financial literacy education in Ontario’s elementary and secondary

school curricula passed unanimously, and the Ontario government has

since made financial literacy part of the Ontario curriculum from

grades 4-12. Charles has also served as chair of the Industry Caucus

at Queen’s Park.



From his extensive experience in owning a business and helping small

businesses grow to putting forward bold new ideas, Charles Sousa is

the candidate Liberals need to ensure the continued trust of Ontario

families on the critical issue of the economy.

"Let’s initiate some change. It's going to help us initiate some jobs. It’s going to help us prepare for the future because this is all about making decisions today to have greater long-term benefit"

Like Charles on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/VoteSousa
Follow the campaign on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/votesousa
Sign up to support Charles at http://www.votesousa.ca/join-us/
____________________________________________________

That's Charles Sousa talking about his high speed rail plan in a great interview with The Windsor Star.

Here's what Charles has to say about creating jobs across Ontario by investing in rail and ensuring we support the auto sector:

Mississauga South MPP Charles Sousa, who threw his hat into the provincial Liberal leadership ring on the weekend, says he would push the federal government for a high-speed rail link if he becomes premier.




“Forever we’ve been talking about a high-speed rail from Windsor to Quebec City,” said Sousa, who visited The Windsor Star Wednesday on a swing through Southwestern Ontario.



“Well let’s get on it. Let’s initiate some change. That’s going to help us initiate some jobs. It’s going to help us prepare for the future because this is all about making decisions today to have greater long-term benefit.”



Sousa, 54, has served as minister of citizenship and immigration and minister of labour since his election in 2007. Prior to that he worked for more than 20 years with the Royal Bank of Canada, serving in several senior positions.



Sousa says his focus is on jobs, and he would be the “jobs premier,” staking out territory on the right of the party spectrum where former Windsor West MPP Sandra Pupatello has also positioned herself.



“Government doesn’t produce jobs, businesses and entrepreneurs do,” said Sousa.



“What we need to do as a government is provide stimulus, the programs to enable those jobs to flourish, to invite and initiate some of that. In the end all of the decisions we make should revolve around how do we make a new job, and that in turn will provide greater economic benefit to enable us to afford the things that matter.



“It’s all about being fiscally responsible and socially and environmentally conscious.”

...

Sousa also said he would fight to bring more auto industry jobs back to Ontario.


“It is essential,” said Sousa.

“I know the opposition called it corporate welfare when we stepped in to protect 400,000 jobs, and that’s critical, the ripple effect is huge had we not stepped it up. We’re got to be diligent in continuing to attract those investments.”

A real plan to create real jobs. If you think Ontario deserves a jobs Premier, check out Charles' website and sign up!