End 'double-speak' and empty promises, says independent MHA Paul Lane

Independent MHA Paul Lane is calling on his colleagues to end the "silly partisan political games" that have become an established part of business in the House of Assembly.

He wants to start by killing the "double-speak" and empty promises.

"I have received training in this from both parties,"he wrote in a recent Facebook post."Admittedly, I've been there and done that. But the time has come to end it."

"I think that the general public are quite tired, quite frankly, of these scripted messages," Lane told host Anthony Germain Tuesday in an interviewon CBC Radio's St. John'sMorning Show. "I believe people want the straight goods."

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The MHA for MountPearl-Southlandswas originally elected as a Progressive Conservative. He crossed the floor to join the Liberals in 2014, but was tossed in May when he refused to support the government's controversial budget.

Now that he's an independent politician Lane says he's free of the "communications gurus" and theirstrict adherence to"key messages."

"I'm no member of any particular party. So whatever messages I'm going to convey are going to be my own messages," Lane said.

'People want the straight goods'

It's a political style that Lanecultivated over the eight years he spent immersed in the grass-roots politics of Mount Pearl city council.

"You got to represent the views of the people. You got to speak your own voice. You weren't controlled in any way by anybody else."

Lane said all that freedom went out the window when he moved to provincial politics.

"I'm just saying as one MHA I've made the decision that I'm not going to be constrained by double-speak and party politics."

Lane said it was a decision that didn't come lightly.

"Is this a hill I'm willing to die on? Quite frankly, that's what it comes down to. And I guess now on two occasions I reached a point where I was atop a hill that I was willing to die on."

The House of Assembly is closed for the summer so it's difficult to tell if Lane's message will have any immediate impact.And it's another three-and-a-half years before voters in Mount Pearl-Southlands will decide if they prefer a team player, or an independent voice.

"I believe people want the straight goods," he said.