If Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak was hoping to give Ontarians a distinct choice at the polls next year, his “New Deal” for the public sector certainly does the trick. But do we really want to live under Hudak’s vision?
The fact that the traditionally labour-loving Liberals have already stolen his thunder with their hard line on union contracts — landing smack in Hudak austerity territory — may have so unnerved him that he veered even farther right with his “Paths to Prosperity,” a 26-page blueprint for strangling the public sector.
For anyone who thinks the Liberal government is creating unnecessary labour strife, Hudak’s pledge to reduce government ministries by one third, make union membership optional and cut thousands of jobs will surely plunge the province into turmoil. And chaos doesn’t create the right climate for jobs or investment.
Hudak’s plan makes his mentor, former premier Mike Harris, look downright benevolent. If his “New Deal” were a movie-of-the-week (sans Ontario film grants) Hudak would stunt double as Tea Partier Paul Ryan, albeit without those six-pack abs.
The problems set out in Hudak’s plan are correct: The Ontario government has a $14.4-billion deficit with a $260-billion debt that economist Don Drummond predicts will increase to $411 billion within five years. It’s a huge challenge for the Liberals, especially now that they are effectively leaderless in the wake of Premier Dalton McGuinty’s resignation and have lost their best friends during election time, the teachers’ unions.
If timing is everything, then Hudak may have lucked into the perfect political moment. To take advantage, he released a plan that gives Ontarians his vision on debt reduction. But his sharp tilt to the right may cost him thoughtful voters.
Hudak’s policies are squandering a prime opportunity to attract the disgruntled electorate. The plan he released (plus a few bungled announcements on the privatization of government agencies) is so hard line that it will scare off centrists who don’t view politics through the prism of a slasher film. Good governments don’t kill services that people need.
If he wants to be the heroic debt slayer, Hudak needs to drop the divisive tactics, such as his attempt to foster anger among private sector workers against their neighbours in the public service. Nowhere in his plan does Hudak explain how the economy will be better off when thousands of middle-class employees get laid off, stop spending money in stores or paying for their kids’ university education.
The proposed exodus of civil servants raises another problem that his plan fails to address: Where exactly will those job cuts come from? How will the PCs slice the public sector and still expect the government to, for example, monitor safety of the elderly in nursing homes, workers on dangerous job sites or hazards to the environment? You can’t have it both ways.
It’s not that Hudak doesn’t have some good ideas. His plan for a transparent, cost-effective government, by posting online expenses is a good one. So is his idea to disband the foreign-owned monopoly behind the Beer Store. While we’re at it, we like his plan to sell beer and wine in corner stores. Actually, it was Liberal David Peterson’s suggestion first, back in the mid-1980s. But like a good old friend, we’re happy to see its return.
What is questionable, especially since the political stakes are so high, is his talk of privatizing the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, with its annual injection of $1.6 billion into government coffers. Ditto his plan to privatize the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., which would be illegal, since the Criminal Code of Canada says gambling must be “conducted and managed” by the province. Besides, the OLG is already privatizing every other facet of its operations, so Hudak’s announcement is largely irrelevant. Maybe he needs an ideas editor.
After promoting chain gangs in the 2011 election, Hudak is getting a rare second chance to win power from a weakened adversary. And what does he offer? A strategy to decimate the public service.
What you see is what you get. And what you don’t see – details on the loss of government services that monitor the health and safety of our province – that’s the stuff Ontarians should be really worried about.
Original Article
Source: the star
Author: editorial
The fact that the traditionally labour-loving Liberals have already stolen his thunder with their hard line on union contracts — landing smack in Hudak austerity territory — may have so unnerved him that he veered even farther right with his “Paths to Prosperity,” a 26-page blueprint for strangling the public sector.
For anyone who thinks the Liberal government is creating unnecessary labour strife, Hudak’s pledge to reduce government ministries by one third, make union membership optional and cut thousands of jobs will surely plunge the province into turmoil. And chaos doesn’t create the right climate for jobs or investment.
Hudak’s plan makes his mentor, former premier Mike Harris, look downright benevolent. If his “New Deal” were a movie-of-the-week (sans Ontario film grants) Hudak would stunt double as Tea Partier Paul Ryan, albeit without those six-pack abs.
The problems set out in Hudak’s plan are correct: The Ontario government has a $14.4-billion deficit with a $260-billion debt that economist Don Drummond predicts will increase to $411 billion within five years. It’s a huge challenge for the Liberals, especially now that they are effectively leaderless in the wake of Premier Dalton McGuinty’s resignation and have lost their best friends during election time, the teachers’ unions.
If timing is everything, then Hudak may have lucked into the perfect political moment. To take advantage, he released a plan that gives Ontarians his vision on debt reduction. But his sharp tilt to the right may cost him thoughtful voters.
Hudak’s policies are squandering a prime opportunity to attract the disgruntled electorate. The plan he released (plus a few bungled announcements on the privatization of government agencies) is so hard line that it will scare off centrists who don’t view politics through the prism of a slasher film. Good governments don’t kill services that people need.
If he wants to be the heroic debt slayer, Hudak needs to drop the divisive tactics, such as his attempt to foster anger among private sector workers against their neighbours in the public service. Nowhere in his plan does Hudak explain how the economy will be better off when thousands of middle-class employees get laid off, stop spending money in stores or paying for their kids’ university education.
The proposed exodus of civil servants raises another problem that his plan fails to address: Where exactly will those job cuts come from? How will the PCs slice the public sector and still expect the government to, for example, monitor safety of the elderly in nursing homes, workers on dangerous job sites or hazards to the environment? You can’t have it both ways.
It’s not that Hudak doesn’t have some good ideas. His plan for a transparent, cost-effective government, by posting online expenses is a good one. So is his idea to disband the foreign-owned monopoly behind the Beer Store. While we’re at it, we like his plan to sell beer and wine in corner stores. Actually, it was Liberal David Peterson’s suggestion first, back in the mid-1980s. But like a good old friend, we’re happy to see its return.
What is questionable, especially since the political stakes are so high, is his talk of privatizing the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, with its annual injection of $1.6 billion into government coffers. Ditto his plan to privatize the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., which would be illegal, since the Criminal Code of Canada says gambling must be “conducted and managed” by the province. Besides, the OLG is already privatizing every other facet of its operations, so Hudak’s announcement is largely irrelevant. Maybe he needs an ideas editor.
After promoting chain gangs in the 2011 election, Hudak is getting a rare second chance to win power from a weakened adversary. And what does he offer? A strategy to decimate the public service.
What you see is what you get. And what you don’t see – details on the loss of government services that monitor the health and safety of our province – that’s the stuff Ontarians should be really worried about.
Original Article
Source: the star
Author: editorial
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