Statement from John Yakabuski, MPP for Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke, on January’s Job Numbers
“The job numbers released today show the provincial unemployment rate remained unchanged for the start of 2016, holding at 6.7 per cent.
Monthly job numbers are just a snapshot in time – it is more important to analyze the long-term trends and legacies.
The long-term trends show that Premier Wynne has gone from first to worst, with the Fraser Institute confirming in its most recent report that Kathleen Wynne has the worst fiscal record of any sitting Premier.
Premier Wynne’s distinction isn’t surprising when you consider that Ontario’s net debt has grown by almost 91 per cent in less than 10 years — the highest rate of growth of any federal or provincial government in Canada.
With no real plan to balance the budget or grow our economy, the Wynne Liberals will be forced to further slash spending.
We’ve already seen the impact of cuts. After wasting billions of taxpayer dollars, the Liberals cannot properly fund the health care system they are responsible for. Their cuts are forcing hospitals to lay-off staff and cut services, and patients languish on waitlists for surgeries and long-term care.
And, after overcharging Ontarians $37 billion for electricity, it’s no wonder our hydro rates are among the highest in North America. Families can’t afford their hydro bills, and businesses like General Motors are closing production lines.
In fact, the business climate in Ontario is so bad, General Motors won’t even commit to staying in the province after 2017.
This isn’t unexpected when you look at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce’s most recent report. It showed that only 30 per cent of Ontario’s businesses have confidence in the Liberal Government’s handling of the provincial economy.
Whether it’s having the largest debt of any sub-national borrower in the world, our skyrocketing hydro rates, excessive red tape or the new Ontario job-killing payroll tax, Ontario is becoming one of the hardest places to do business.
Life is harder under the Wynne Liberals, and our province is headed down the wrong path.”