$424 million(!) being added to the debt every single day
By Franco Terrazzano and Jay Goldberg Canadian Taxpayers Federation If the federal government’s fiscal policy stays on its current trajectory, Canada’s trillion-dollar debt will be a major drain on taxpayers’ wallets for generations to come. In this election, voters will need to closely examine parties’ plans to plug that drain. Unfortunately, the current Liberal plan…
A huge portion of the high cost of living is being driven by government policy
By Franco Terrazzano and Jay Goldberg Canadian Taxpayers Federation Political parties are trying their best to convince Canadians they can make life more affordable. But if politicians want us to believe them, they need to look in the mirror. That’s because making life more affordable really means tackling the damage government does through regulation, high…
The Trudeau government wants you to believe it’s targeting hate speech when, in reality, it’s targeting free speech
Free speech ensures that Canadians have the right to tell governments when they’re wrong. While this may be unpleasant for governments, it is absolutely vital in a democratic society. Rather than strengthening Canadians’ rights, the Trudeau government wants to filter free speech through the lens of a bureaucratic superstructure. There can be no doubt that…
It’s time to take the cake away from Ontario’s politicians. It’s time to end political welfare
Ontario’s political parties have a bad spending habit, but they don’t have to pay for it because taxpayers get stuck with their political welfare scheme. In Ontario, political parties are given millions from the pockets of hardworking taxpayers through a system referred to as the per-vote subsidy. This money does not go toward funding their…
Ontario taxpayers deserve better
It’s time for Ontario taxpayers to hit the debt panic button. The Parliamentary Budget Officer released a troubling report earlier this month that shows that, when Ontario’s provincial and municipal finances are looked at together, Ontario will be running deficits indefinitely, until at least the year 2095. Typically, when analysts look at the state of…
His commitment to a smaller cabinet was short-lived
While there was much palace intrigue when Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced his cabinet shuffle last month, there was one elephant in the room that was not discussed: the cabinet’s size. Before Ford was sworn into office in 2018, he promised to slim down the size of the province’s cabinet, which had ballooned dramatically under…
Ontario’s college and university employees have been busy cashing in on massive pay hikes during the pandemic
While Ontario’s college and university employees have been busy cashing in on massive pay hikes during the pandemic, taxpayers and tuition-paying students have been barely getting by. The newly minted minister responsible for universities and colleges, Jill Dunlop, now has a full knapsack of homework to do on this expensive file. With a $33-billion deficit,…
Doug Ford's decision to override the Charter wasn't done for some high principle, however. He did it for his own self-interest
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has decided to override the Charter for the first time in Ontario’s history. But he’s not doing it for some high principle. He’s doing it for his own self-interest. Just days after Ford’s new election law, the Protecting Ontario Elections Act, was struck down by the Ontario Superior Court, the government…
Targeting the education budget and bureaucracy would equal real progress on the deficit
Thanks to the reckless policies of former premiers Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne, when Ontario Premier Doug Ford was elected three years ago the province was well on its way to being driven into a fiscal wall. Ford promised Ontario voters that he would hit the breaks. Unfortunately, it seems like he hasn’t been able…
With less than a year until the next election, taxpayers expect Ford to live up to the promises that got him elected in the first place
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has less than a year to make good on the affordability agenda he promised voters while on the campaign trail. “We have a very simple theory,” said Ford. “Put money back into the taxpayers’ pocket instead of the government’s pocket because we believe that the taxpayers are a lot smarter at…
It’s time to bring their sky-high pay down to earth
While thousands of Ontario teachers are receiving six-figure salaries, a budget crunch at the Ministry of Education means it’s time to bring their sky-high pay down to earth. A report released by the Ontario Financial Accountability Office shows a $200 million funding gap between what the province has budgeted to spend on education and what…
Finance committee voted to give a $2.9 million tax break to a new Porsche(!) dealership
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson is preparing to take Ottawa taxpayers for quite a ride. Ottawa city council’s finance committee voted to give a $2.9 million tax break to a new Porsche dealership. Ottawa’s municipal politicians are literally planning to hand over millions of taxpayer dollars to a luxury car dealership. And they think this is…
Expert analysis showed the Rail Deck Park project would likely cost over $3.8 billion
Toronto Mayor John Tory is still trying to click the buy button on his multi-billion-dollar legacy park project, but it just came up with an error message saying it’s no longer available. That error message could save taxpayers billions. Four years ago, Tory and Toronto’s city council embarked on a mission to waste billions of…
Municipal employee salary hikes during lockdowns a slap in the face to taxpayers
As hardworking taxpayers tightened their belts last year to cope with pay cuts and job losses, Toronto’s municipal employees were busy cashing in bigger paycheques with your tax dollars. The City of Toronto currently employs 34,603 workers. Last year, only 104 of them didn’t get a raise. That means over 99.6 per cent of Toronto…
Ford's free-spending ways surpassing those of Kathleen Wynne
Ontario Premier Doug Ford promised to end the party with taxpayers’ money. Instead, he’s replaced the iPod playlist and chip dip with the booming beats of a live DJ and a laser light show. When he was campaigning across the province during the 2018 election, Ford promised to end the government’s free-spending ways and restore…