Fall economic statement falls flat

NEWS RELEASE
Ted Arnott, MPP
Wellington-Halton Hills
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 16, 2012

Fall economic statement falls flat
(Queen’s Park) – Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott says that the Liberal Government’s fall
economic statement offered no new ideas to address the province’s economic challenges.

The statement and background papers were delivered to MPPs in the Ontario Legislature by Finance
Minister Dwight Duncan on October 15, the same day Dalton McGuinty announced his intention to resign
as Premier.

“The Liberal Government has yet to acknowledge the full scope of our fiscal challenge and they have
offered nothing new to get us out of this mess,” said Mr. Arnott.

In his statement, Mr. Duncan revised the province’s projected deficit for the current fiscal year to $14.4
billion. That means that, in effect, the Ontario Government is borrowing $1.6 million every hour, 24 hours
a day, 7 days a week.

Under the Liberal Government’s watch, the net provincial debt per capita – in other words, the amount of
Provincial debt that each Ontario resident owes – will rise from $17,625 to $19,075 year over year. It
1
was $11,339 when Dalton McGuinty first came to office in 2003.

“They need to do much more to explain why we must live within our means and stop spending money
that we do not have,” Mr. Arnott argued. “Unfortunately, since they have done so much to dig this hole,
they’re reluctant to talk about it.”

This year alone, Ontario is planning to spend $10.6 billion to service the provincial debt. This represents
the third highest provincial expenditure, behind only health care and education.

According to the Auditor General’s most recent report, at Ontario’s current debt level, the province will
pay an additional $500 million in interest for each 1% rise in interest rates.

Last week the Ontario PC Caucus released Paths to Prosperity: An Agenda for Growth, the latest in a
series of white papers which present a comprehensive set of ideas for the future direction of the
province.

“Our Caucus has constructive ideas to encourage job creation and economic growth,” noted Mr. Arnott.
“We know that Ontario needs jobs and we believe our proposals can inspire hope in the future for our
province. Ontario can lead again.”

All of the white papers can be found at https://www.ontariopc.com/paths-to-prosperity/ .

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Ted Arnott, MPP
Phone: 416-325-3880
Email: ted.arnott@pc.ola.org

1
2012 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review, Background Papers, pg. 104-105.