Hardworking Ontario families need all the help they can get
If Ontario Premier Doug Ford doesn’t want to be the grinch who stole Christmas, he’ll start working on a plan to make Ontario’s temporary gas tax cut permanent. Ontario drivers are now at the midpoint of the Ford government’s temporary gas tax relief period. Beginning on July 1, the province reduced its gas excise tax…
But is the government truly committed to getting it done?
“To the people of Northeastern Ontario, you have my word. We will bring the Northlander back to Timmins and Cochrane,” said Premier Ford during his swearing-in ceremony at Queen’s Park this summer. Folks, this could only mean one thing; we’re getting our passenger train back ... right? Just like when it was promised to us…
Taxpayers could get soaked with higher taxes and reckless government spending
Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s promise to hand the mayors of Toronto and Ottawa more powers could be a dangerous gateway to higher taxes and runaway government spending. Hardworking taxpayers wouldn’t trust one person selected by someone else to unilaterally manage their household expenses and retirement savings. Yet, that’s essentially what Ford might have up his…
The largest roster of overpaid politicians in the province’s history
Has your life become 63 per cent more complicated than it was four years ago? According to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, his life sure has. Late last month, Ford announced his picks for his new cabinet and parliamentary secretaries as he embarks on his second term as premier. Ford announced the largest roster of overpaid…
$10-a-day child care plan least efficient, most expensive and complex way to tackle affordability
The rising cost of living is doing a number on family budgets. In response, the federal government recently released its “affordability plan” that includes the previously announced child-care fee reductions under its Canada-wide $10-a-day plan. In May, some Ontario families had expected to see reduced child-care fees and a partial refund backdated to Apr. 1.…
It’s time for taxpayers to get out of the political party welfare business
Ontarians should listen for a giant sucking sound from Queen’s Park. Now that the election is over and MPPs know that they don’t have to directly answer to voters for another four years, you can bet that Ontario’s political parties will team up once again to funnel even more money from taxpayers’ wallets into party…
His fiscal record is no better than that of the Liberal government he replaced
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is surely celebrating his decisive re-election victory. But Ford should not be complacent. He was re-elected despite his record, not because of it. It’s worth remembering former premier Kathleen Wynne won re-election in 2014. She wrongly took her re-election as a go-ahead from voters to pursue her spend-happy agenda. But four…
Looking to Ontario for clues on how to turn its fortunes around fraught with uncertainties
Imagine a provincial premier who is wildly unpopular with voters. An election is still some time away, but pundits are already speculating the incumbent conservative party could suffer a bloodbath. As the conservative government lunges from one fumble to the next, their leader just can’t stop putting his foot in his mouth. The NDP opposition…
Simply put, NDP and Liberal supporters found nothing of value in their parties' platforms
Ontario Premier Doug Ford and the Progressive Conservatives were triumphant in the June 2 election. That hasn’t stopped their critics and opponents from pouring cold water on this impressive victory for something not of their own making. The PCs won 40.82 per cent of the vote and 83 of the 124 contested seats. This was…
Canadians tend to apply some odd words and phrases to our politics and they often make no sense
Okay everyone, it’s time for political trivia. Of the 124 provincial ridings in Ontario, how many incumbents are running in the June 2 election? The answer is zero. Hold on. If there are members of provincial parliament (MPPs) running in this campaign, and all four major party leaders held a seat in the previous legislative…