A great article by Mike “Make It Right” Holmes, host of the television series Holmes on Homes & Holmes Inspection, on The David Suzuki Foundation’s blog today: Over the past few weeks, Ontario politicians have engaged in heated de…
Continue readingTag: Ontario politics
the reeves report: Taking election polls with a grain of salt
In advance of the leader’s debate tonight, two competing polls have come out in recent days that indicate both PC leader Tim Hudak and Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty are leading in voter intentions. This means two things: that this race is likely closer than anyone anticipated two months ago, and that polls are worth what … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Parking taxes and road tolls: the politics of misdirection
I have an important announcement for all political parties – not every comment made by every individual opposition candidate can or should be used as a stand-in for opposition policy as a whole. Because people are not dumb, they see through it, and you end up looking silly. Case in point: a press release came … Continue reading »
Continue reading350 or bust: Future Schmucher
This shocking attack ad on 8 year old Penelope was released yesterday, as the Ontario election debate continues. More links: Penelope4Ontario.ca
Continue readingthe reeves report: TVO is taking election coverage to impressive new levels
TVOntario has decided it won’t take voter apathy lying down. Not when Steve Paikin can do something about it. That’s why Ontario’s own TVO has ramped up its coverage of the 2011 provincial election to be the most comprehensive the network has ever attempted. Alongside Paikin’s nightly news show The Agenda with Steve Paikin is … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Horwath downplays coalition talk; asks Toronto Council to halt TTC cuts
Anyone hoping that a recent plea from provincial NDP leader Andrea Horwath to Toronto City Council to hold off on transit cuts will make a difference is kidding themselves. Or the have a lot more faith in Toronto mayor Rob Ford’s desire to listen to left-wing politicians than I do. According to Horwath as reported … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: Ontario Green vote projected to drop – but it doesn’t have to
Just about the only thing that all parties and observers can agree upon about the upcoming Ontario election is that the high vote percentage gained by the Green Party of Ontario (GPO) in 2007 will not be maintained in 2011. And it is expected to drop for a number of reasons, but not all of … Continue reading »
Continue readingthe reeves report: AMO hopes to move waste discussion beyond eco fees
The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) has released a special insert into newspapers across Ontario that stresses the importance of having a proper debate and discussion on the future of waste management in the province. They stress the importance of “safe disposal of our increasingly complex, and potentially toxic, garbage.” AMO argues that after … Continue reading »
Continue readingCanadian Progressive World: Ontario New Democrats Steer Clear of US-Style Dirty Politics
“Unofficial political” websites are the new tools for smearing dirt on opponents. Both Tim Hudak’s Progressive Conservatives and Dalton McGuinty’s Ontario Liberals have them. PC: www.ontariansneednotapply.com and www.liberalreview.ca….
Continue readingthe reeves report: Tim Hudak’s Hypocracy is Apparent in Recent Immigration Debate
Perhaps Ontario Conservative leader Tim Hudak would like to find a new issue with which to drive a wedge between the Ontario electorate and Premier Dalton McGuinty. Why? Because in recent days, his decision to use an immigration pledge in the recently-released Liberal platform shows both his lack of experience as a party leader and … Continue reading »
Continue readingPromises and the Liberal Long Game: Tuition in Ontario
Guest post by Eric Newstadt There has been a lot of interest in the Liberal plan to offer full-time students an up-front grant so as to reduce their tuition-fees, not least from yours truly. Indeed, the promise is a rather … Continue reading &#…
Continue readingThis drama with the Catholic school system reminds me of a Mel Brooks moment
I’m sorry, I just can’t help it sometimes.It’s probably not the most famous or best-remembered scene from Blazing Saddles (and in truth, it’s got a lot of competition), but in light of the Catholic school system’s way of dealing with gay and lesbian st…
Continue readingAll this Catholic-school business reminds me of a Mel Brooks moment
I’m sorry, I just can’t help it sometimes.It’s probably not the most famous or best-remembered scene from Blazing Saddles (and in truth, it’s got a lot of competition), but in light of the Catholic school system’s way of dealing with gay and lesbian st…
Continue readingThe Catholic school system needs to get its hands out of our pockets
And that’s just for starters.The travesty that took place this week is common knowledge by now. Activist Leanne Iskander, who’s got more courage in her little finger than most people have in their whole bodies, has been threatened with disciplinar…
Continue readingRunesmith's Canadian Content: Uproar over Uploading
The recent Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) Conference presented a golden opportunity for Provincial candidates to make their pitch to just about every municipal government leader in the province. This hugely influential alliance of mayors, councillors and regional chairs was anxious to hear exactly what the party leaders had to offer Ontario’s cities and towns, and they certainly got an earful.
Unfortunately, some candidates weren’t telling them what they wanted to hear.
The biggest shock came when PC leader Tim Hudak was asked if his government would continue the ‘uploading’ of services from municipal and regional jurisdiction to the provincial level. This is a process that was started by the McGuinty Liberals almost as soon as they took office, designed to reverse the ‘downloading’ of costs for everything from transit to social services to court security onto municipalities by the previous Progressive Conservative government – a government that Mr. Hudak played a significant role in.
Downloading was essentially a shell game designed to make the new Provincial government look like economic wizards, when all it really accomplished was to transfer those costs from the income tax base onto the considerably less flexible property tax base. Municipal budgets have been buckling ever since.
The current Provincial government has been slowly (some say too slowly) reassuming those costs, as well as gradually eliminating the GTA pooling that saw Halton property tax dollars funding services in downtown Toronto. In Halton’s case, those savings have been parlayed into much needed infrastructure investments, as well as easing the tax burden on homeowners.
The process is only about two-thirds of the way complete, which is why AMO delegates were shocked to hear that a Tim Hudak government would put the brakes on it until they can see exactly what the province’s financial situation is. That has been taken as a nice way of saying that the uploading will stop, and may even be reversed again.
For Halton, and especially for Milton, this is of particular concern since one of the current items being ‘uploaded’ is court security – a very big deal in this prison town. Now Regional staff are estimating that halting the uploading of that and other remaining services will cost Halton an estimated $15.9 million per year in projected savings.
Reaction from AMO delegates and editorialists alike has been universally negative. One particular mayor was seriously pissed, especially when it was suggested that Hudak’s comments were at all ambiguous:
Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion said she wasn’t confused at all by Hudak’s position on uploading.
“He was very clear. He is going to stop it,” she said. “He supports it where it is at.”
Social costs must be taken completely off property taxes, she said. “Health is next then education,” she said. “The uploading has to continue in a major way and this is only the beginning. Property taxes were designed to take care of property, not humans.”
Note to candidates: irritating Hazel McCallion is NOT how you get elected in Ontario.
For the record, both the NDP and Green party leaders have firmly committed to honouring and even improving on the current government’s uploading commitments. As for Hudak, it remains to be seen whether his handlers’ attempts to downplay his remarks will appease voters.
They certainly haven’t fooled anyone who was at the AMO Conference.
Continue readingRunesmith's Canadian Content: Uproar over Uploading
The recent Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) Conference presented a golden opportunity for Provincial candidates to make their pitch to just about every municipal government leader in the province. This hugely influential alliance of mayors, councillors and regional chairs was anxious to hear exactly what the party leaders had
Continue readingRunesmith's Canadian Content: Uproar over Uploading
The recent Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) Conference presented a golden opportunity for Provincial candidates to make their pitch to just about every municipal government leader in the province. This hugely influential alliance of mayors, councillors and regional chairs was anxious to hear exactly what the party leaders had
Continue readingthe woodshed: Enter early and often!
The Toronto Library Worker’s Union is sponsoring a contest to show how much people love the library after braying philistine Doug “Tweedledum” Ford suggested close a bunch of them or even selling them off to the private sector because he wasn’t sure wh…
Continue readingthe woodshed: Mammoliti will protect our precious bodily fluids
Toronto city councillor George “Giorgio” Mammoliti (he changed his name in 2002 from English to Italian to better reflect his desire to suck up to immigrant voters in his ward Italian heritage) has apparently finally made the full journey from populist…
Continue readingthe woodshed: Sometimes they just make this too easy
Yesterday, the Toronto Sun asked readers to suggest three “quick fix” ideas for things that Toronto Mayor Rob Ford could do right away to make Toronto a better city. Well, they asked…I think the fastest way for Rob Ford to improve the city of T…
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