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Election Exactly One Week From Today

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Another labour endorsement for PC leader Doug Ford.

A local union of the United Association of Refrigeration Workers in Brampton announced its support during a visit by Ford to their training facility.

Photo courtesy Ontario PC Party/Facebook

“These folks are supporting us because they know that we’re going to make sure that they have jobs for the future. Many jobs for the future. We’re putting money into the trades or putting 10’s of millions of dollars into the training facilities,” says Ford.

Ford says they are also working to get more people into those trades.

Photo courtesy Ontario NDP/Facebook

NDP leader Andrea Horwath is proposing to improve mental health services for post-secondary students.

It’s part of her universal mental health care in the province.

Horwath says there has been a lot of pressure on students.

“The consistency of not only classes and courses, but supports that you need in school to succeed during this disruptive time have been really, really difficult to get. I’m happy to say that our plan would fix that,” says Horwath.

The plan includes increased funding for mental health professionals and programs on campus.

Liberal leader Steven Del Duca accuses Doug Ford of failing to support small business owners.

Del Duca says the PC leader showed that during the pandemic with his bias toward big box stores and large grocery chains.

“And why? Because he’s lost his way. Because he’s only interested in himself, his political fortunes, his reelection chances instead of caring about the people,” says Del Duca.

Del Duca says under a Liberal government, corporate taxes on small businesses would be waived for two years to help them recover.

Green Party leader Mike Schreiner is paying extra attention to the riding of Parry Sound-Muskoka area.

Schreiner feels the Greens have a good shot at winning there.

“Matt Richter, in the 2018 election, finished actually slightly better than I did in the 2014 election in Guelph. We know what happened in Guelph in 2018, and we believe we are well-positioned for that to happen in Parry Sound-Muskoka in 2022,” says Schreiner.

Parry Sound-Muskoka is one of two ridings where the Liberal Party is not running a candidate.

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Lowering Your Grocery & Gas Bills; Who’s Offering What This Election

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It’s a vicious circle when the price of gas rises, so does the cost of food and products along with it.

Since there is less than two weeks left until election day on June 2nd, what have the political parties offered to do for Ontario residents to lower the price of groceries and gas?

Progressive Conservative

  • Nothing specifically noted to lower grocery costs in their platform.
  • Gas: proposing a six month relief of gas tax at 5.7 cents/L starting July 1st. (they note that there’s already a 4.73 per cent cut that’s already in place after cancelling the former Liberal’s cap & trade program).
  • Offering a new credit called Low-income Individuals and Families Tax (LIFT) Credit, that is supposed to help individuals and families to have more cash in their pockets in order to pay for groceries.

Liberals

  • Offering to remove the provincial tax (eight per cent) on prepared foods at grocery stores listed for under $20. ex: prepared roast chickens, fruit/veggie trays…etc.
    • The HST would be subsidized by a one per cent surtax on Ontario companies that earn more than a billion dollars, as well as introducing a new tax bracket for Ontarians that earn more than $500,000.
  • Offering to remove the 5.7 cents/L of the gas tax and 5.3 cents/L on the fuel tax.

NDP

  • While there’s no specific plan to cut taxes or add a specific credit, the party does want to create a provincial food strategy that supports local farmers and the agri-food industry via mentorship, financial advice and loan guarantees.
  • Wants to regulate the price of gas through the Ontario Energy Board (OEB), which would benefit drivers as well as businesses shipping products

Green Party

  • Offering to fund the start ups of “community-owned healthy food markets”.
  • Establish purchasing goals for the provincial government for Ontario produced foods.
  • Nothing specifically noted to lower grocery costs in their platform.

While this isn’t an exhaustive list of ways that each political party would reduce your price at the pumps or at the grocery store, it is a starting point to aid in your decision making before heading to the polls on Thurs. June 2nd.

Advance polls are also open, view locations, dates and times here.

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Labour Movement Split on Leader Support

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NDP leader Andrea Horwath is committed to making her proposal to implement a universal pharmacare program a priority.

Horwath says it will be one of the first things she does if her party forms the next provincial government.

“This plan is something that we will implement immediately upon forming government in a couple of weeks time and provide not only that relief, but that security that you can get the prescriptions that you need,” says Horwath.

Howarth says her plan will save families an average of $350 each year.

Election polls put the NDP in third place, behind the PCs and Liberals.

Leader Andrea Horwath brushes off the notion that achieves her goal of forming the government, a coalition with the other parties is needed.

“I’m running for premier, and I’m running to have a majority government because people need to have hope that the things that matter most to them can actually be fixed, and that’s what this campaign is all about.”

Horwath continues to campaign on that the fact that her party is in the best position to unseat Doug Ford.”

Liberal leader Steven Del Duca is proposing a top-up of employment insurance benefits for workers taking parental leave.

The federal government allows for an eighteen-month leave, but benefits received are lower when spread over that period.

Del Duca says his plan would add to those benefits.

“This kind of plan, topping up and fully funding an 18-month parental leave program, could put up to $255 back in the pockets of Ontario families each and every single week,” says Del Duca.

Del Duca says he would also work with the feds to help the self-employed, contract and gig workers receive benefits they currently don’t qualify.

Del Duca was also dogged by reporters’ questions about the qualification and qualities of certain candidates the NDP has raised.

The Liberal leader says he’s not playing the political games being played by other party leaders, calling them desperation tactics.

“I’m disappointed to hear that Ms. Horvath and her team want to continue to focus on attacking me and Ontario Liberals instead of trying to take the fight to Doug Ford. Ontario Liberals will remain exclusively focused on making sure that Doug Ford’s first term in office is his last.”

Del Duca’s also sidestepped questions about his political future if he doesn’t form government.

PC leader Doug Ford campaigned in Hamilton to recognize two more trade union endorsements.

“I’m so grateful for the support of these unions and workers across Ontario, and I want our workers to know that I’ll always have your back,” says Ford

He’s received endorsements from five unions in the past week.

Ford says trade unions have given up on the NDP and leader Andrea Horwath, he continues to call anti-building everything.

“She’s anti-building anything, anti-building housing, anti-building highways, anti-building roads. Horvath would rather sit there on a picket line with their signs protesting a build than actually getting it done.”

Horwarth says she’s not concerned with the trade union endorsement of the PC leader Doug Ford.

She doesn’t see Ford being a friend of working people.

“We know whose side Doug Ford is on. We know his cuts hurt people, and we know he is not a friend of working people, hasn’t been, won’t be, pretending to be now, maybe, but that’s not who Doug Ford is,” says Horwath.

Horwarth points to endorsements from the Ontario Federation of Labour and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union that show labour still supports the NDP.

The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation is throwing its support being Mike Schreiner and the Green Party in the provincial election.

It’s the first time the union has endorsed the Greens.

President Karen Littlewood says Schreiner’s education platform reflects much of what they want to be addressed.

“Mike consulted with us over the education platform, and he’s really encapsulated well. It is about improving the lives of Ontarians. This is not just education, this is communities. This is public services,” says Littlewood.

Littlewood says with 60-thousand plus members, the weight of the endorsement can have a difference at the polls on June 2.

“I’ve worked hard prior to being elected and since being elected to earn your trust, to build a working relationship with you so that we can stand up and fight for better public education,” says Schreiner in recognizing the endorsement.

 

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Liberals/Greens Release Separate Northern Ontario Platforms

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Two more of the provincial party leaders have unveiled their campaign platforms specific to northern Ontario.

Liberal leader Steven Del Duca’s promises include the creation of a Ministry of Immigration to help bring newcomers to the north to work and live.

“We will work with the federal government, seeking a mandate from the people of this province to make sure that Ontario is in the driver’s seat when it comes to our own immigration system.,” says Del Duca.

Del Duca says he will also create an advisory plan to ensure the new Ministry is established in the best interest of the north.

Other promises for northern Ontario include;

  • Ensuring everyone can access a family doctor or nurse practitioner within 24 hours, regardless of their postal code;
  • Covering tuition costs for medical and nursing students who commit to working in a rural or remote community;
  • Getting affordable, high-speed internet to everyone in Northern Ontario by 2025;
  • Constructing new roads to open up access to the Ring of Fire;
  • Supporting and empowering Northern municipalities by rebating 5% of the provincial mining tax;
  • Making Community Transportation Grants permanent and slashing municipal and Ontario Northland fares to a “buck-a-ride;”
  • Promoting economic development and regional tourism by boosting funding for the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund to $150 million;
  • Building or repairing Northern community infrastructure, like libraries and arenas;
  • Advancing the proven “2+1” highway model to support safe passing on major Northern Ontario highways;
  • Ensuring the highest possible level of winter maintenance on Highways 11 and 17;
  • Promoting safer winter driving by introducing a refundable tax credit of $75 per winter tire and $100 per studded tire in Northern Ontario; and
  • Reversing Ford Conservative cuts and delays to critical Northern services and projects, and ensuring the following projects move ahead:
    • The four-laning of Highway 69 and Highway 11/7 between Thunder Bay and Nipigon by 2025;
    • The widening of Highway 17 from Kenora to the Manitoba border;
    • The reconstruction of Highway 101 in Timmins;
    • The Cochrane bypass from Highway 11 to Highway 652.

Green Party leader Mike Schreiner also unveiled his plans for northern Ontario on Tuesday.

Photo supplied by Green Party of Ontario

“Ontario’s Greens have your back. We have a vision for the north to be prosperous, to be a leader in the new climate economy, to create the new career and job opportunities people in the north need to succeed,” says Schreiner.

The Green’s plan focus on seven key areas

1) Create good green jobs in the North

  • Increase sustainable, circular and Indigenous-led access to critical minerals and metals while fully adhering to principles of UNDRIP
  • Maximize job and economic benefits for Northern communities by removing barriers to mass timber building

2) Expand access to quality healthcare in Northern communities

  • Make dedicated investments in Nurse Practitioner-led clinics in the North where improved access to primary care is critical

3) Invest in a mental health and addictions strategy

  • Build at least 4,000 supportive homes and 6,000 affordable community rental homes for Northern communities
  • Implement the Ontario Greens’ Addiction Strategy to address the drug poisoning crisis that has disproportionately affected Northern communities

4) Improve funding for education and French language access

  • Support the University of Sudbury in transforming into a university by and for Francophones

5) Protect Ontario’s natural heritage

  • Provide $1B in funding to First Nations communities to support Indigenous-protected and conserved areas and Indigenous-led climate solutions

6) Partner with Indigenous communities

  • Invest in the creation of 14,000 Indigenous-led affordable homes in Northern Ontario communities

7) Improve connections to the North

  • Immediately restore and improve the Northlander passenger rail service between Toronto and Cochrane with funding for upfront capital costs of $220 million as well as annual operating subsidies of $12 million
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NDP Rolls Out Northern Ontario Platform

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NDP leader Andrea Horwath has released her party’s platform for northern Ontario.

Health care plays a prominent role.

It includes hiring 300 more doctors, including one hundred specialists and 40 mental health practitioners.

“You have not gotten your fair share on so many fronts, and we’re here to say you can get your fair share with the government that pays attention to your needs,” says Horwath.

Horwath is also promising to deal with the opioid crisis with investments in treatment programs and revamping the Northern Ontario Travel Grant program.

Other components include creating more training and job opportunities in the trades, mining and film and television sector.

An NDP government would also make high-speed Internet available across the north by 2025.

Ontario Liberal leader Stephen Del Duca has released his full campaign platform.

It’s labelled A Place to Grow.

He says it tackles the province’s affordability crisis and will help families get ahead.

“Our message to the people of Ontario is that this plan will give them the relief that they deserve. And the choice on June 2 will be theirs,” says Del Duca.

The Liberal plan is fully costed.

Del Duca says it also paves a way for Ontario’s budget to be balanced by the 2026-27 fiscal year.

Green Party leader Mike Schreiner wants to give first-time homebuyers a level playing field.

Schreiner says if elected premier, he will put the brakes on wealthy speculators and corporations, which he says are driving up the costs of homes across the province.

“We will bring in a multiple homes speculation tax and a vacant home speculation tax. The clampdown on the rampant speculation happening in the housing market,” says Schreiner.

Schreiner will also make home inspections mandatory at the seller’s expense.

Ontario PC leader Doug Ford is promising to increase the Ontario Disability Support Program by five per cent,

It will then be followed by annual increases tied to inflation.

Ford is also pledging an enhancement to a credit program geared toward low-income individuals and families.

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Leaders to Debate in North Bay

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Ontario’s party leaders will gather in North Bay today.

They are taking part in a debate as part of the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities conference.

Northern issues are expected to play prominently.

The questions are coming from municipal leaders in northeastern Ontario.

It will be the first debate for the leaders of the PC, Liberal, NDP and Green parties since the election was called.

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Ford Insists Opioid Crisis Being Addressed

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PC leader Doug Ford is defending his party’s record when it comes to the opioid crisis in northern Ontario.

Several communities have seen a rise in overdoses and related-death in the last few years.

Speaking yesterday in Timmins, Ford says tackling the issue has been a priority.

“Actually, we are getting it done. We’re the only government that made sure we had a Minister of Mental Health and Addiction. We’ve done the largest investment in Canadian history of $3.8 billion,” says Ford.

He says that is far and above what the Liberals did when they were in power.

“They did absolutely nothing. They never had a Minister of Mental Health and Addiction. They didn’t put a red cent into mental health and addiction. We’re putting $3.8 billion. I understand it’s an issue here, and we’re going to continue investing and make sure that we help people that have an addiction or have any mental health issues.”

The budget brought forward before the election call included an investment of $204 million into mental health programs.

Recently, a report issued by the Northern Policy Institute presented to local leaders concluded that local municipalities are finding themselves cash strapped in dealing with homelessness, addictions and mental issues.

Analyst and Author Holly Parsons, “All health units in northern Ontario have seen a general increase in opioid-related emergency department visits, with more drastic increases experienced in Northwest Health Unit, Porcupine Health Unit and Public Health Sudbury and District.”

Parsons makes eight recommendations, including creating a northern mental health and addictions centre of excellence to address the unique challenges of service delivery in the region.

She stresses one-size-fits-all policies and standardized systems of care don’t always work up here.

It was a quiet day for the other provincial party leaders on Sunday.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath hosted a Mother’s Day brunch in Ayr.

Green Party leader Mike Schreiner held private meetings with residents in his riding of Guelph.

Liberal leader Steven Del Duca opted to do no campaigning on Mother’s Day.

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Provincial Leaders Kick Off Election Campaigns

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PC leader Doug Ford’s reelection bid is now underway as the campaigning toward the June 2 election officially got underway on Wednesday.

Addressing supporters in Etobicoke last night, Ford says he’s ready to back his campaign slogan, Get it done.

“Friends, it’s time to roll up our sleeves and get to work and say yes to more jobs, more homes and more roads, more highways and public transit, and more money back into your pocket,” says Ford.

Ford labelled the NDP as ‘the party of no’ while criticizing the Liberals for wasting tax dollars, leaving health care on the brink of collapse, and stalling the economy while they were in power.

Supplied photo Ontario NDP

NDP leader Andrea Horwath warns of more cost-cutting if the PCs receive a second mandate.

“So the first job, the most important thing that we can do in this election is to make sure Doug Ford does not get a second term so that the Conservatives can’t make even more cuts that hurt people,” says Horwath.

Horwath says the NDP is the best party to get that done.

She notes the party finished first or second in one hundred ridings in the last election.

Photo courtesy Ontario Liberal Party/Facebook

Education was top of mind as Liberal leader Steven Del Duca kicked off his campaign.

He is promising funding that will lead to the construction of 200 new schools and the upgrade of 4,500 others.

He says the $10 billion will come from cancelling the planned construction of Highway 413 in southern Ontario.

“From my perspective as a dad with kids in the system, the fact that Doug Ford wants to invest at $10 billion on the 413, instead of making sure that our kids attend state of the art schools really underscores how frankly he is not up to the job,” says Del Duca.

Del Duca says he would invest that $10 billion back into the education system within the first 100 days of taking office.

Supplied photo/Green Party of Ontario

While the other party leaders will travel by bus across Ontario, Green Party leader Mike Schreiner is going electric.

He unveiled his campaign and the electric vehicles he will use to tour the province.

Schreiner says running to earn your vote, not buy it.

“Gimmicks are not going to solve the challenges we face in this province. Gimmicks are not going to address the climate crisis and leave a livable future for our children. Gimmicks are not going to provide the housing solutions,” says Schreiner.

On the campaign trail today, Horwath will unveil her party’s plan to expand health care coverage in the province while she campaigns in the Scarborough area.

Del Duca makes a campaign announcement of his own in Woodbridge.

Schreiner talks housing in Waterloo and takes part in a candidate’s debate in his Guelph riding tonight.

The itinerary for PC leader Doug Ford was not immediately available.

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Day 31: Families, Cell Phones, Healthcare

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Making the pitch to voters ahead of election day on Monday.

On Day 31 of the federal election campaign, Conservative leader Erin O’Toole made his pitch to families east of Ottawa, promising that if he’s elected Prime Minister, the Child Care Expense deduction will be converted into a refundable tax credit.

Screen capture of Conservative leader Erin O’Toole (CPAC)

“To help lower income families today, not five years from now, with up to 75 per cent of child care expenses covered,” remarked O’Toole. “Six years of inaction by Mr. Trudeau, now he’s telling families to wait another five or six years, we’re going to help them now.”

Liberal leader Justin Trudeau in British Columbia pressed that the Tories don’t believe in climate change.

“Do we continue and move forward even faster and harder in the fight against climate change or do we let Erin O’Toole take us back?” asked Trudeau.

Liberal leader Justin Trudeau image (CPAC)

“Mr. O’Toole says now he’s in favour of public health care but he told groups of Conservatives that he thinks there should be more, private, for-profit health care. These are the types of things we’re seeing from Mr. O’Toole, he’s not leading he’s misleading Canadians.

The NDP are promising to lower cellphone and internet bills if they’re the governing party.

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh in Toronto (CPAC)

Leader Jagmeet Singh said in Toronto that he wants to put a cap on telecom bills, implement mandatory unlimited data plans as well as break up monopolies that allow companies to charge higher prices.

“One of the proposals that we’ve put forward is looking at putting in place a publicly owned crown corporation to invest in the infrastructure necessary, to connect communities that don’t have access to the internet. That is a vital infrastructure piece.”

When it comes to voting before election day, you have until 6:00 p.m. Tuesday to vote at any Elections Canada office using a special ballot.

Election Day is Monday, September 20th.

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Five Party Leaders Debate In English Tonight

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Canada’s five party leaders will debate affordability, reconciliation, climate, leadership and accountability during the English language television debate on Thursday night.

University of New Brunswick political science professor J.P. Lewis said seeing political violence in the United States, it’s not surprising to see it creep into the Canadian political landscape.

With violence impacting campaign stops by the Liberal party recently, Lewis said there is nothing new in seeing anger for the incumbent government.

“What changes the dynamics of this sort of thing is obviously social media in terms of individuals’ ability to share messages and organize with like-minded individuals,” Lewis said.

A lot may be riding on the debate for some party leaders.

Lewis said for many Canadians the debate will be an introduction to Conservative leader Erin O’Toole even though he’s been an MP since 2012 and served as a cabinet minister under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

“If you are not following things daily, this may be a new politician to you. Because the Tories have been up in the polls for a couple of weeks now, I’d say the spotlight may be on him and we’ll see how the other leaders react,” Lewis said.

Lewis thinks this will be a very close election.

Joining O’Toole will be Liberal leader Justin Trudeau, The Green party’s Annamie Paul, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh and Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet.

The two-hour debate begins at 8 p.m. Central.

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