Northern growth plan Liberal hypocrisy: Conservatives

NEWS RELEASE

RANDY HILLIER, MPP LANARK-FRONTENAC- LENNOX-ADDINGTON

***************************** Northern growth plan another Liberal hypocrisy

QUEEN'S PARK - The McGuinty Liberals’ Northern growth plan is yet another hypocrisy perpetrated by a party which has failed Northerners time and time again, stated Randy Hillier, PC Party critic for Northern Development, Mines and Forestry.

A “northern” document originally penned by George Smitherman, the growth plan will do nothing to stem the tide of a Northern recession that the Liberals have created.

“With scores of damaging Liberal policies already put in place by the government over the past two years, it’s tough to see how the addition of a Northern think-tank is going to help create prosperity in Northern Ontario,” said Randy Hillier. “Dalton McGuinty’s liberals raised energy prices, flubbed the Mining Act reforms, cut off 50 percent of the North from all development with Bill 191 and decimated the forestry industry. What’s left for a policy institute to do?”

A Conference Board of Canada report released this week showed the effect that Dalton McGuinty's bad policies have had on Northern Ontario: It had the second worst growth of any region in Canada.

High energy prices have driven jobs from Northern Ontario, where industry such as mining and forestry is energy intensive.

High hydro prices drove Xstrata to shut down their Timmins copper smelter last year.

“Dalton McGuinty's mining and forestry policies were essentially written by downtown Toronto environmental lobbyists,” said Hillier. “That's why we've lost over 60 timber mills and over 40,000 forestry jobs. That's why Ontario has fallen from the best jurisdiction in the world for mining to 20th place.”

“This document is lacking in specifics, but Northerners have been very specific: they want jobs, and a government which listens. Right now, they have neither,” said Hillier. “The liberals have turned Northern Ontario into a have-not region of a have-not province.”   ***************************** /// Earlier SooToday.com coverage of this story

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