MPP Thompson calls on Liberals to scrap tire-tax program

Environment Minister must make changes to Bill 151 to increase waste diversion
QUEEN’S PARK – Today, Huron-Bruce MPP and PC Environment Critic Lisa Thompson called on the Liberals to scrap their tire-tax program after news reports revealed the government’s agency, Ontario Tire Stewardship, has been wasting Ontarians’ money on lavish stays at luxury hotels and expensive dinners.

“Ontarians are rightly outraged with the waste and abuse of their money by the Liberals’ tire-tax agency,” Thompson said today. “There’s only one way to stop this abuse, and that’s to scrap Ontario Tire Stewardship.”
The Minister claimed in Question Period today that he had already scrapped eco-taxes with Bill 151, the Waste-Free Ontario Act, even though OTS continues to operate its tire-tax program and his proposed legislation hasn’t been passed into law.
“The Minister should be honest with Ontarians,” Thompson said. “The truth is Bill 151 continues each and every one of the Liberals’ eco-tax programs. That means Ontario Tire Stewardship can charge consumers tire taxes for as long as the Minister chooses.”
The Ontario PCs have long championed a plan to increase waste diversion by eliminating eco-tax programs and making businesses responsible for meeting recycling standards and targets. The Liberals adopted this approach in Bill 151, but they have provided no firm guarantees that they will eliminate eco-taxes.