Ontario will move forward with construction of the Bradford Ring Road and Highway 413, according to the province’s fall economic statement.
The government’s new mini-budget, tabled Thursday, also includes a much lower deficit projection for fiscal year 2021-2022 than what was forecast in last March’s budget. Although the province has dubbed the prospect ‘building Ontario’, the funding allocated to build hospitals, schools and public transit over the next three years is no different than what has been tabled. in the most recent budget.
In recent press conferences presenting an overview of the economic statement, Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy presented “Building Ontario” as a way to jumpstart economic recovery amid the COVID-19 pandemic and to provide the necessary infrastructure.
“The qualities that saw our province through the worst days of the pandemic – the minds of the people of Ontario – will lead us to a brighter and more prosperous future,” Bethlenfalvy said in a statement.
“This is our plan to build a better and brighter future for the people of Ontario,” he later told the Legislature.
There is no tax reduction in the document, although the province introduces a tax credit for “stay” and improves or extends several existing tax credits, including the tax credit of the Ontario for Home Safety for Seniors.
WATCH | Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy discusses the province’s fall financial update:
Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy joins Power & Politics to discuss the province’s fall tax update, which projects a much lower deficit compared to the budget presented in March. 5:52
A minimum wage of $ 15, announced Tuesday by Premier Doug Ford, is also in the law.
The province was keen to build two new highways in the Greater Toronto Area, with Highway 413 cutting an arc between Highway 400 at the northern limit of Vaughan and the highway 401 and 407 interchange near the intersection of Milton, Mississauga and Brampton, and the Bradford Bypass connecting Highway 400 to the north end of Highway 404.
Minister says it’s “time to build 413”
The province says it will spend an additional $ 1.6 billion over the next six years to support major bridge rehabilitation projects and advance major highway expansion projects, including the 413 and the bypass. Bradford.
“The evidence is clear… it’s time to build 413,” Bethlenfalvy said, adding that the province’s expansion plans do not include tolls.
However, there is no specific breakdown of the costs of these projects included in the declaration. Earlier estimates from the previous Liberal government put the cost of Highway 413 at just $ 6 billion.
In a briefing on Thursday morning, a senior government official said it would not be appropriate to discuss specific costs as there will be a competitive bidding process for projects, but added that it would be funded by the province’s capital plan.
Opposition critics questioned the value of these projects, including whether the routes were planned to benefit Ford’s allies, how long they will save commuters and the environmental impacts.
Critics speaking at Queen’s Park on Thursday rejected the announcement. Scarborough-Guildwood Liberal MP Mitzie Hunter said this “falls far short of what Ontarians need” and amounts to a “premature victory lap” in the face of uncertainty surrounding the COVID-pandemic. 19.
“You chose instead to double things like highways and bypasses, instead of education,” she said.
“It’s an absolute shame.”
NDP Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath echoed this sentiment in a statement.
“Mr. Ford’s budget update is not what Ontarians need right now. There is nothing to make life more affordable, and there is no help for hospitals and a reduction for our children’s schools, ”she said.
And after allocating $ 10.7 billion in time-limited funding for Ontario’s COVID-19 this year, including support for schools, the province plans to cut it to $ 3.4 billion per year. next year and end it by 2023-24. Without including COVID-19 time-limited funding, program spending is expected to drop from $ 165.5 billion this year to $ 173 billion next year.
The phrase “climate change” appears only twice in the province’s 200-page document.
Expenses described in community care, health care and other sectors
The province is now also forecasting a significantly lower deficit projection for this fiscal year than budgeted.
The 2021 budget deficit outlook pegged the deficit at $ 33.1 billion, although Thursday’s outlook puts it at $ 21.5 billion.
A government official said during the province’s briefing that the change reflects the recovery of Ontario’s economy from the effects of the pandemic, with the improvement partly due to higher than expected tax revenues. .
The update also shows that Ontario is investing an additional $ 549 million over three years in home and community care to expand home care services, funding approximately 28,000 post-acute surgery patients and up to 21 000 patients with complex health problems. This will help provide nursing and therapy visits and personal support services, according to the government.
In addition, the province is preparing to spend $ 342 million to upgrade and upgrade the skills of more than 5,000 registered nurses and licensed practical nurses and 8,000 personal support workers. An additional $ 57.6 million will be used to hire 225 additional nurse practitioners in long-term care, starting next year.
Ontario also plans to spend $ 22 million over three years to integrate clinical information between hospitals and long-term care homes to streamline readmissions and provide information to families.
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