Debt reduction just latest Liberal math myth

QUEEN’S PARK – New analysis shows Kathleen Wynne’s so-called “debt reduction” plan is fiscal fallacy based on “questionable assumptions” and “wishful thinking”, Ontario PC Finance Critic Vic Fedeli said today.

Fedeli pointed to a new Fraser Institute report that questions the credibility of the government’s claim it will reduce Ontario’s debt-to-GDP ratio back to pre McGuinty-Wynne levels by 2029-30.

“After years of Liberal waste, mismanagement and scandals, the province’s debt is crippling,” Fedeli said. “Ontario families will be saddled with huge costs after the election and for decades to come.”

The Fraser report states debt ratio reduction will have to nearly triple the current pace to meet the target, and that essentially no new debt be added after 2021 – something Kathleen Wynne has shown little appetite or ability to achieve, noted Fedeli. It also states the government is relying on questionable economic growth assumptions in its projections. Fedeli says this continues the pattern of Liberal dishonesty about the state of Ontario’s finances.

“The Financial Accountability Officer has repeatedly contradicted the government’s fiscal claims. In his annual report last month, he stated his ‘fiscal outlook was not consistent with the one ‎in the budget,’ and projects ‘a significant deterioration in Ontario budget deficits in the coming fiscal years,’” Fedeli said.

The Ontario PCs have continued to say the government’s finances are a sham, and once again, independent experts confirm it, added Fedeli.

“To fix the mess they’ve created, after the election, the Liberals will go back to raising taxes, cutting health care, and jacking up hydro rates,” he said. “Some might say math is hard, but Wynne Liberal math is downright impossible. Under the Liberals Ontario families will continue to pay more and get less.”