By MPP Toby Barrett For Ontario to lead again, we must make the decisions necessary to balance the budget in a responsible way. Ontario’s Auditor General, Jim McCarter, has advised residents to take the McGuinty pledge to limit spending to 1.8 per cent a year with a “moderately big grain of salt,”. In his recent … Continue reading “Families / governments must live within their means”
Category: Column Articles
By MPP Toby Barrett While the Ontario government has focused on priorities like policing what kind of dog we can own or protecting the dandelions on our lawn – it has turned a blind eye to lawbreakers who take a free ride on the backs of law-abiding citizens. This is wrong and is in need … Continue reading “Our way of life is based on one law for all”
By MPP Toby Barrett Strong farms are vital to a strong Haldimand-Norfolk and a strong Ontario. And a strong rural Ontario needs a healthy and sustainable agricultural sector – one that provides opportunities for the next generation of families to continue to earn a living from farming. Government does have a role to play – … Continue reading “Now is the time for a renewed focus on farming”
By MPP Toby Barrett Eight years ago I recall chatting with a gentleman in what was known as Alice’s Restaurant – just north of Scotland – about the highlight of his day. Each afternoon he would order a pot of tea and a butter tart for $2. He described it as the one luxury he … Continue reading “New and increased taxes are taking their toll”
By MPP Toby Barrett The wind tower debate has heated up in recent weeks – both in the media and at public meetings in Port Rowan, Port Dover and Hagersville. As well, Dalton McGuinty sent brochures to homes in Haldimand-Norfolk – and the ridings of Opposition Leader Tim Hudak, MPPs Hardeman, and Klees – suggesting … Continue reading “The untold cost of wind and solar experiments”
By MPP Toby Barrett Last week, I hosted a news conference in the Cayuga Village Green to announce a commitment to provide immediate relief for families, by removing the HST from home hydro and heating bills, and removing the ‘debt retirement charge’ on home hydro bills. The commitment encompasses three specific action steps: First, the … Continue reading “Scrap the HST on electricity and home heating!”
By MPP Toby Barrett Recently, I debated yet another tobacco bill in the Ontario Legislature. Bill 186 is titled Supporting Smoke-Free Ontario by Reducing Contraband Tobacco. Looking at the name of the bill, I question why the McGuinty government has chosen to merely “reduce” instead of “eliminate” illegal tobacco? Eight years of tobacco tax hikes … Continue reading “New tobacco law will not eliminate contraband”
By MPP Toby Barrett With Ontario families already stretching to pay McGuinty’s electricity increases on today’s bills, they cannot afford hydro bills forecast to skyrocket 46 per cent annually over the next four years. From smart meters, to the Green Energy Act, to the sweetheart Samsung subsidy, electricity bills continue to climb. Dalton McGuinty’s Long-Term … Continue reading “Hydro users can’t afford Samsung and costly FIT”
By MPP Toby Barrett While most budget deliberations focus on spending plans, our Finance Committee proceedings have been sidetracked recently by a two-line amendment government hoped to bury. Schedule 15 of Bill 173, the Better Tomorrow for Ontario Act, changes the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act threatens to derail transparency and accountability … Continue reading “Transparency key to a healthy tomorrow for Ontario “Sunshine is the best disinfectant” – Lewis Brandeis”
By MPP Toby Barrett Last year I introduced disabilities legislation to provide incentives for people on support to allow them to earn and then keep more of their own money. Bill 23 passed second reading and was referred to the Finance Committee – but a year later we continue to wait. Sadly, political partisanship has … Continue reading “Will disabilities law see light of day?”