Another year has come and gone and Ontario's weak public finances remain largely unchanged. The provincial government did little to improve its fiscal position in 2013 and recently signalled it intends to continue with debt-financed spending into the New Year. But the status quo isnt serving Ontarians well. For 2014, the government should chart a new course that places provincial finances on a more sound footing. That would be a much-needed New Year's resolution for Canadas largest province.
ontario
December 20, 2013
2:00AM
For many years, Ontario has been the quiet enabler for the vast system of subsidies the federal government provides to Atlantic Canada, Quebec and Manitoba. With rare exceptions, it has stood by as equalization grew and as the federal government incorporated subsidies to regions in more and more of its regular programming.
In recent years, evidence has been accumulating that the regional subsidy system is much bigger than it appears on the surface, unsustainable for both Alberta and Ontario and entirely counterproductive because it discourages growth in all recipient provinces.
November 9, 2013
2:00AM
Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa called his updated financial plan a new direction but in truth it had a nostalgic feel. With his government facing considerable fiscal challenges including an $11.7 billion deficit and growing debt, Ontarians desperately needed a new direction. What they actually got was more of the same: increased spending and a government reluctant to deal with core problems.
October 31, 2013
3:00AM
Back in 2005, the Fraser Institute published a policy study examining the Ontario government's decision to shut down coal-fired power generation in the province.
September 5, 2013
2:00AM
With Labour Day fresh in our memory and Ontarios unemployment rate having recently increased to 7.6 per cent, the province would do well to follow Indiana and Michigans lead and adopt worker choice laws. Doing so would make Ontario a significantly more competitive jurisdiction for business investment and provide a much needed shot in the arm for the provinces struggling manufacturing sector.
In 2012, both Indiana and Michigan enacted worker choice laws and there is a reasonable likelihood that Ohio may soon do the same.
May 6, 2013
2:00AM
Kathleen Wynne, the new Premier of Ontario, recently stated her willingness to consider implementing new methods to raise revenue to help fund expansion of public transit. Furthermore, the 2013 Ontario Budget presented by Minister of Finance Charles Sousa Thursday, specifically indicates that the Province is committing to convert select high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes in the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area (GTHA) into high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes as a potential option in this regard. A plan on the conversion is to be brought forward by the end of the year.
May 3, 2013
2:00AM
The May 2 minority Liberal budget is a politically expedient document that likely avoids an election but unfortunately fails to tackle Ontario's looming fiscal crisis. The longer the province waits, the more difficult and painful the reforms will be when the inevitable day of reckoning arrives.
May 2, 2013
2:00AM
In 2009, under the Premiership of Dalton McGuinty, the Ontario legislature passed the Ontario Green Energy Act (GEA), an Act that aimed to increase Ontarios use of renewable energy such as wind power, solar power, biofuels, and small-scale hydropower. The centerpiece of the Act is a schedule of subsidized electricity purchase contracts called Feed-in-Tariffs that provide long-term guarantees of above-market rates for power generated by those renewables.