Ontario PC Caucus wants to see a credible plan in provincial budget

1. A credible plan to make energy affordable, which shall include halting any further sale of shares in Hydro One. Ontario has among the highest energy rates in North America. Since the Liberal Government was elected, hydro costs have increased by more than $1,000 per year on the average family, and an additional 42 per cent increase is expected between 2013 and 2018.

2. A plan to properly manage Ontario's health care system which shall include reversing the current and planned cuts to doctors, nurses and hospital. Cuts to health care in Ontario have meant that patients are not receiving the quality health care services they deserve. In Ontario, we have seen an $815 million cut to physician services, $50 million in cuts to physiotherapy services for seniors, the loss of 50 medical residency positions, and a total cut of $54-million in health care funding.

3. A credible plan to balance the budget, and immediate action to pay down the debt. The Financial Accountability Officer's report on the economic and fiscal outlook of Ontario found that the Liberal Government has no real plan to balance the budget. If revenue and spending continue as they have for the past four years, the Liberal Government will run a deficit of $3.5 billion in 2017-2018. Ontario government's debt has grown by 91 per cent in less than 10 years — the highest rate of growth of any federal or provincial government in Canada. The interest on Ontario's debt for 2015 – 2016 is estimated to be $11.3 billion, which is the equivalent of a year of long-term care for 222,043 seniors, 44,120 beds in a palliative care unit for one year, 40,347 hospital beds for one year, 169,052,488 MRI scans.