Ontario budget fails to address government spending crisis, threat of election looms

Today, Ontarians for Responsible Government was disappointed by the budget presented by Ontario's governing Liberal party.

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"Ontario is still facing a budget deficit of more than $12-billion," says Peter Coleman, President and CEO of Ontarians for Responsible Government. "This budget is a step in the wrong direction." The minority Liberals must win support from the provincial NDP for their budget to be approved. The Progressive Conservatives have already indicated that they will vote against the budget, threatening to trigger an election. "In order to guarantee NDP support the Liberals have spared no expense - and taxpayers will be stuck paying the bills," adds Coleman. "This is not a budget that is designed to provide relief for hard-working families.""Ontario is still facing a budget deficit of more than $12-billion," says Peter Coleman, President and CEO of Ontarians for Responsible Government. "This budget is a step in the wrong direction."

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The minority Liberals must win support from the provincial NDP for their budget to be approved. The Progressive Conservatives have already indicated that they will vote against the budget, threatening to trigger an election. "In order to guarantee NDP support the Liberals have spared no expense - and taxpayers will be stuck paying the bills," adds Coleman. "This is not a budget that is designed to provide relief for hard-working families." Included in the budget are more than $1-billion in new spending projects ranging from $300-million for youth employment assistance to $700-million for home care and community services. Overall spending will climb by more than $3.4-billion this year alone. "This government claims it is on track to return to balanced budgets by 2017, yet they cannot commit to the spending freezes that are needed to make this happen," continues Coleman. "This is just another example that the provincial Liberals have lost touch with reality." Kathleen Wynne has struggled to emerge from controversy this week as investigations continue into Liberal party interference in the decision to cancel a power plant scheduled to be built in Oakville. "Kathleen Wynne's Liberals had an opportunity to put these scandals behind them, and show that they are serious about political accountability. Instead, we are just getting more of the same poor leadership that we came to expect from Dalton McGuinty," adds Coleman. "Ontario simply cannot afford to have this high-spending Liberal-NDP coalition making decisions for our province." Ontarians for Responsible Government is a project of the National Citizens Coalition. Peter Coleman President and CEO Email: pcoleman@ncc-on.org Phone: 416-869-3838

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