PC Caucus seeks to revive Ontario’s manufacturing sector
NEWS RELEASE
Ted Arnott, MPP
Wellington-Halton Hills
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 19, 2013
PC Caucus seeks to revive Ontario’s manufacturing sector
(Wellington-Halton Hills) – Ontario can turn around its struggling manufacturing sector, and bring
new manufacturing jobs to the province, says Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott.
On July 18, the Ontario PC Caucus released its latest white paper, Paths to Prosperity: Advanced
Manufacturing for a Better Ontario. The white paper outlines ideas to encourage the creation of up
to 300,000 new manufacturing jobs in Ontario.
“A thriving manufacturing sector is critical to our economic success,” said Mr. Arnott. “This white
paper brings forward ideas that we believe can help turn around our manufacturing sector and
create jobs here in Ontario.”
Among the ideas proposed in the white paper are:
Establishing a new, affordable power rate for manufacturing and resources-based industry at
a price which is competitive with neighbouring jurisdictions.
Matching provincial retraining assistance to the needs of employers and the job market.
Encouraging investment in new plants and technology to improve productivity by making
these investments fully tax deductible.
Aggressively pushing for more international and interprovincial free trade to open new
markets to Ontario businesses.
“Since the Liberals were elected to Government, Ontario has lost 300,000 manufacturing jobs. They
have turned a blind eye to the problems faced by manufacturers for far too long,” Mr. Arnott argued.
“We need to actively put policies in place aimed at bringing these good paying jobs back to Ontario.”
Mr. Arnott has been warning about the troubles facing Ontario’s manufacturing sector for years. In
2005, he tabled a Private Member’s Resolution in the Ontario Legislature which called on the
Provincial Government to establish an all-party Committee of the Legislature to investigate Ontario’s
industrial and economic competitiveness and to develop an action plan to protect manufacturing
jobs in the Province.
“We cannot take current favourable economic conditions for granted,” Mr. Arnott argued at the time.
“The world isn’t standing still and our manufacturers are facing unprecedented challenges in the
global marketplace. If we aren’t competitive we will lose jobs.”
Although Mr. Arnott’s resolution was passed by the House on November 30, 2006, the Liberal
Government did not allow the Committee hearings to take place.
The white paper on manufacturing can be found at: http://ontariopc.uberflip.com/i/144519
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Ted Arnott, MPP
Phone: 416-325-3880
Email: ted.arnott@pc.ola.org