Liberal budget rejected by New Democrats

On May 2, Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said she would not be supporting the minority Liberal budget that was to be implemented, resulting in an election in June.

The budget supported by the Liberals is a 10-year economic plan that promotes job creation, changes in transportation and infrastructure and a provincial pension plan.

According to Daiene Vernile, Liberal candidate in the Kitchener Centre riding, there are plans for an all-day Go Train service, as well as the removal of the debt retirement charge from citizens’ hydro bills.

“I saw that they were promising 70 new promises in that budget after not having fulfilled three promises from the previous budget, and I couldn’t support a budget that I knew the Liberals would not deliver on,” Horwath said.

One crucial promise that was not fulfilled by the previous Liberal budget was the development of a financial accountability office.

“The Liberals did try to hire two qualified candidates, but on both occasions the NDP blocked it. In particular, it was Catherine Fife who stopped those guys from being hired, and yet that is the excuse they gave for not wanting to pass the budget,” Vernile said.

Horwath said the Liberals have also failed to fulfill promises of the reduction in Ottawa insurance rates, as well as homecare services.
She claimed the budget is a tactic used to distract Ontarians from the “scandal and waste” the Liberals have been involved in during their governance.

Vernile, however, stated this opposition and discussion of scandal is simply being used to distract citizens from the core issues at hand.
Horwath brought up the incidents of the cancellation of gas plants in Mississauga and Oakville, as well as the Ornge air ambulance scandal as previous examples of Liberal mishaps, despite this having little to do with the budget.

“People deserve much better than that, and it is frustrating to watch the same things happen over and over again,” Horwath said. “People are tired of that kind of waste and misguided priority.”

Vernile continued to explain how, despite the budget encompassing a number of NDP-friendly initiatives, the party still chose to reject the motion, thus resulting in an election.

Horwath said that while there are some interesting components to the budget, it is not worth anything if the promises cannot be fulfilled, which is something she believes is a recurring theme with Liberal promises.

 

 

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