VETERAN MP NO DOPE

But Karen Kraft Sloan supported controversial decriminalization bill

When she celebrates the 10th anniversary of her election later this year,
York North MP Karen Kraft Sloan won't be lighting up a joint, despite her
strong support for the decriminalization of marijuana.

And yes, she did try, she did inhale, but she hasn't touched the stuff since
a brief encounter in university.

"Let me say there may have been an occasion where I inhaled, but that was a
very long time ago, probably first year," she told The Advocate in a
telephone interview from her office on Parliament Hill just prior to the
summer recess.

"When you decriminalize marijuana, you can put resources into areas where
the real roots of the problem are," she explained. "The other problem is
that the law is unevenly applied across the country."

Being saddled with a criminal conviction because of a youthful indiscretion
isn't fair, she argued.

Decriminalizing pot wasn't on the agenda when she was first elected.

In what was then York-Simcoe riding, Mrs. Kraft Sloan ousted incumbent Tory
MP John Cole, who was swept away in the red Liberal tide Oct. 25, 1993.

Since then, Mrs. Kraft Sloan, 51, has been re-elected in 1997 and 2000 in
the current York North riding. The former adult education and business
consultant holds a Masters degree in environmental studies and lives in
Mount Albert with her husband Tod and children Jessica and Patrick.

She expects to run again on a ticket led by Paul Martin. A staunch Martin
supporter, she is looking forward to the new style of governing he'll bring.

"Clearly there are two styles of governing between Mr. Martin and the prime
minister," she said.

Mrs. Kraft Sloan said she sees Mr. Chretien as "a very practical man (who
is) interested more in the day-to-day management of the country, while Mr.
Martin is a bit more of a visionary who can articulate that vision".

Well-known as an environmental activist with a long resume on and off
Parliament Hill, Mrs. Kraft Sloan said Mr. Martin "has probably done more
for the environment than a lot of environment ministers we've had".

The former vice-chairperson of the House of Commons standing committee on
the environment and sustainable development, and organizer of two
international EcoSummits, Mrs. Kraft Sloan helped spearhead amendments to
the Species At Risk Act, despite opposition from the Prime Minister's
Office.

Organizing 30 members of the Liberal caucus, she helped force the government
to pull the bill.

"We started to negotiate with the Prime Minister's Office and we were able
to craft something that was acceptable," she said. Stickhandling through the
maze of legislative amendments also required the co-operation of the
Canadian Alliance.

Because of her hard-nosed stand in that fight, she was able to bring about
changes to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act to include Crown
corporations and increase public participation in environmental issues under
that piece of legislation.

While still holding the environment as one of her chief causes, Mrs. Kraft
Sloan has since moved on to other duties, including foreign affairs, human
rights and international development.

Closer to home, Mrs. Kraft Sloan is involved in a subcommittee on children
and youth at risk, including a study of urban aboriginal children where
there are "jurisdictional gaps", she said.

"Aboriginal people who live on reserves like Georgina Island are clearly
part of federal jurisdiction and, off island, you are still registered with
the band. There are people who are living in Sutton who can access service
on the island, but if you live in downtown Toronto, for example, and your
community is in northern Alberta, then it's really hard."

The health of Lake Simcoe is still at the top of her list. "I've been
working with (former cabinet member) Herb Gray who is now head of the
International Joint Commission for the Great Lakes."

Among its issues are the invasive species that are threatening the Great
Lakes and their adjoining waters, like Lake Simcoe, she said.

"To make Lake Simcoe part of the commission is something I've been pushing
for a long time. I believe it's part of the Great Lakes basin and should be
designated as a community of concern," Mrs. Kraft Sloan said. "The problem
with that is lack of funding, so they're not interested in creating new
areas of concern."

While Mrs. Kraft Sloan has been touted as cabinet material for some time by
many Hill watchers, she said the sheer number of Ontario MPs makes that more
difficult.

"I'd have a greater opportunity if I were from Saskatchewan or Manitoba, or
PEI, for example. There are an awful lot of talented individuals in the
GTA," she said, adding she would jump at the chance of moving out of the
backbench seat she has occupied for a decade.

While her job takes her around the world, she is quick to point out it would
be difficult without a devoted staff at both her Newmarket constituency
office and her office in Ottawa. They include Rae Bowie, who started the
year after she was elected and Debbie McDonald, who has been there since
1993.

"Meeting people at the door and being told that Debbie helped get my pension
cheque through, or Rae solved this funding problem for us -- those
interactions at the community level really make the job worth doing," Mrs.
Kraft Sloan said.

"There was one case of a couple who were going over to Georgia (in the
former USSR) to adopt a baby and they were having trouble with the Canadian
consul office in Moscow. I told them to have that official call me. They
said, 'Well, that could mean two or three in the morning'. I said, 'I don't
care, you tell him to call me'."

As it turned out, they did get a hard time, but when the functionary
realized he was about to get an irate MP on the line from Canada in the
middle of the night, the red tape disappeared quickly.

"I got to see the baby afterward," Mrs. Kraft Sloan said proudly. "Those are
the kind of things that keep you grounded, the things that make this job the
best in the world."

Ms Kraft Sloan's constituency office number in Newmarket is 905-836-9586.
Her Ottawa office number if 1-613-996-7752. Her email address is
KraftSloan.K@parl.gc.ca