There is an elephant lumbering outside the doors of the Ontario legislature these days, and when it decides to make a move, something could get broken.
Its name is Don Drummond, and he has been paid $1,500 a day for several months to advise Premier Dalton McGuinty where government should start to fight a deficit that has reached $16 billion.
It is an interesting and vital process for Wellington Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott. The veteran of many legislatures is having a tough time predicting anything because of the unknown of what Drummond will recommend – and if the government will attempt to implement his recommendations.
Arnott said on election night with a minority government there is a chance for MPPs to cooperate and to work together to work to improve Ontario.
In an interview with the Advertiser on what the coming year might hold for Ontario, Arnott said, “It was my belief there was a changed environment and there would be a greater opportunity for MPPs to work across party lines.”
But, he concluded a little sadly, “There has to be a will.”
Arnott said he was heartened when McGuinty sought advice from former Progressive Conservative Premier Bill Davis at the start of the term.
“I thought it was a good sign” because Davis led a productive minority Ontario government for four years, which Arnott said is “almost unheard of.”
But, to date he has been disappointed. The legislature sat only three weeks after the October election, and he believes MPPs should have been working in Toronto much longer.
There are other signs that the premier does not grasp the fact he now leads a minority government. Arnott said that only Liberal MPPs Monte Kwinter and Jim Bradley were in the legislature when there was a minority government.
Consequently McGuinty has balked at having a minority of his MPPs sitting on legislative committees. It is parliamentary tradition a government has committee representation in proportion to his standing in the legislature.
“They still want a majority,” Arnott said.
He called that “contrary to history” and added “I think they have to compromise.”
He said the government could “reach out to the opposition” in some simple ways. For example, when there is a government grant for a riding with another party’s MPP, the government could invite that MPP to be present. In fact, it could even inform that MPP of the announcement. That was not something McGuinty’s Liberals regularly did when they had a majority.
“They could tell us in advance – and invite us,” he said, adding “A demonstration of good will could lead to a more cooperative environment.”
Arnott said that on the big issue, Drummond has been giving interviews and making statements about a report he had not yet handed in to the government. One quote of his everyone seems to remember is his prediction of “a lot of pain and anger” that could come from that report.
Arnott said, “It’s very interesting he’s been out there talking to the press before presenting it to the government. I assume he’s been told to do that.”
Arnott believes if the report is a blueprint for the government, the public should know what is in that report “as soon as possible; I would argue as soon as the government does.”
When asked if it might deal with the issue of high pay and perks for government employees, Arnott said it has been McGuinty’s approach to “increase spending every year – spending like there’s no tomorrow. Tomorrow is now here.”
Out of a budget of $124 million, the province has a $16 billion deficit. “It’s a big hole. We’re a have-not province. We’re receiving equalization payments from Newfoundland. If the Liberal government is proud of that … They should be ashamed.”
Arnott noted that one group of employees has been treated particularly well. He said McGuinty has been funneling money to school boards “so that school boards could provide salary increases to teachers at 3% a year. Inflation has been 2%. Our teachers have received substantial increases through those years.”
But that largesse by the premier has a downside, too, Arnott said, wondering if unions are “ready to accept the new reality” of a province deeply in debt and needing to cut spending. “If unions push back… ”
One area that could be affected is a private group called the Working Families Coalition, primarily funded by teachers unions and opposing anyone but McGuinty Liberals by using huge amounts of cash. Arnott’s party has charged many times the group violates at least the spirit of the Election Act Ontario with regard to third party advertising, but the courts have so far ruled against them.
“To what extent is this new reality going to affect one of his key supporters?” Arnott mused.
The provincial government usually sets its budget in March, but with so many unknowns, Arnott said he would not be surprised to see it put off – particularly if the government disagrees with some of Drummond’s recommendations. Or, he noted, the government could decide to move quickly after the legislature resumes on Feb. 22.
Personal goals
Arnott is setting out his own agenda, too, when he returns to the legislature. The day after he was elected, he wrote to the Minister of Health to urge that a promised new hospital for Centre Wellington and upgrades at one in his riding in Georgetown be kept in the queue.
“I want the government to keep its commitment to hospitals in our riding,” he said. “I want to hold them to what they said they would do.”
He wants to see some action on the jobs file. He began pestering the Liberals in the legislature in 2005 over job losses and manufacturing problems in Ontario, and the government did not move much until three years later when it became obvious there was a problem.
He believes it still has not taken the issue seriously. “The government has done almost nothing in articulating a jobs plan,” he said.
His own plans are to visit a lot of main streets in his riding before the legislature starts and talk to business people to “get a better sense of current challenges, and take those back to the legislature.”
He knows one issue will be accessibility laws. “The steps we have to take have to be affordable and implemented in a prudent and reasonable fashion.”
As for accessibility itself, he remembers years ago people were unable to get out of their homes, and that meant little opportunity to participate in society. He sees it as “society is trying to change that. I support that. We can’t do it overnight. It’s going to take time.”
Wind turbines
Arnott is interested to see what will become of McGuinty’s policy forcing wind turbines on areas where many people do not want them. He said protesters might have to wait until the reality of a minority government finally hits the Liberals.
“I would have guessed after the results sink in and they lost a number of rural ridings mainly over the turbines … They arguably lost their majority mishandling the wind energy issue. You would think they would sit down and reevaluate. It would suggest and show they were listening and taking a different approach that shows they’re not heavy handed.”
Arnott noted things have not gone well in the energy file for McGuinty, who lost his Minister of the Environment John Wilkinson in the last election. A win there meant a majority.
The premier did cater to city voters by announcing during the election the closing of a gas plant, but continued being built weeks after the election.
Arnott’s take on that one is, “Don’t people have a right to know if there’s a $100 million penalty?” and he called that situation “absolutely outrageous. There’s no true sense of what this is going to cost.
Meanwhile, he said the government setbacks for wind turbines of 550 metres is not enough and “is not acceptable to the most amount of people in our area.”
Another issue is the mega quarry at Amaranth. The province called for an environmental assessment on it, again during the election.
Arnott said that process could take years, but people should be wary.
“People have to be vigilant throughout the process. It’s going to continue to be an issue in the legislature. I’ve been working with [area MPP] Sylvia Jones on it.”
That warning is one prediction concerned citizens will want to hang on to.
