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THUNDER BAY - Opposition to Premier Dalton McGuinty's appears futile. According to Tim Hudak the agreement is binding on Ontario for five years. During Question Period in Queen's Park on Tuesday, Hudak asked, "On November 9, your government, behind closed doors, signed something called the comprehensive integrated tax coordination agreement, or CITCA. On page 69 of this HST agreement that your government signed, it says you locked the province into your HST grab for a "period of five years from the implementation date." Premier, what in the world gives you the moral authority to lock the province into your greedy tax grab until 2015?"

The Progressive Conservative leader tried several times to get an answer to that question from Premier Dalton McGuinty.

The closest that Hudak got was this response from McGuinty; The Premier said, "Again, if my honourable colleague is questioning our commitment to move ahead with this package of tax reforms, then he's wasting time. I think the real question that weighs heavily on the minds of Ontarians is: If my honourable colleague is so adamantly opposed to our package of tax reform, then why won't he, at a minimum, send a letter to the Minister of Finance in the federal government asking him to put a stop to the HST? Why will he, more importantly, not stand up in this Legislature and say that, should he earn the privilege of serving Ontarians as their Premier, he will put a stop to the HST immediately?"

The onslaught against the HST continued with questions from NDP leader Andrea Horwath.

"The Premier likes to pretend that the HST is already a done deal. Despite widespread opposition from Ontario families, the Premier has said he wants the HST bill rammed through the Legislature before Christmas. But he alone cannot bring in the HST; he needs his friends in Ottawa to pass legislation to make the HST possible. Why is the Premier plowing ahead with this bill, refusing to hold province-wide public hearings when it hasn't even passed the minority Parliament in Ottawa?," asked the NDP leader.

Premier McGuinty continued to state that his plan will create 600,000 jobs.

McGuinty states, "I haven't heard from a single Ontarian who is not eager for us to put in place a plan to create 600,000 more jobs-not one. I haven't heard from an Ontarian, either, who would not be interested in any kind of a plan, positive or otherwise, but at least a plan of some kind, either coming from the NDP or the Conservatives, that would create jobs.

"We know what they are against. We know that they find security in clinging to a past that is not going to come back to us, but they don't have a plan to build a stronger Ontario for the future. We do. We've got a plan that's going to create 600,000 jobs over the course of the next 10 years. It's a plan that's going to lead to $47 billion more in investment in new businesses, and it's going to increase our incomes by up to 9%. We think it's a solid plan; it's a plan worthy of the ambitions of the people of Ontario. We're going to move forward with it on their behalf".

What the Premier has not yet outlined is that what kinds of jobs those 600,000 jobs will be, and when they will be created.

Using the Premier's own figures, that during his first four years in office he created 131,222 jobs per year means that the claim that the HST will create 60,000 jobs a year mean a shortfall of 72,222 jobs fewer will be created in Ontario each year. The figures come from statements made by Dalton McGuinty on September 13th 2007, when the Premier was under fire by the opposition over the loss of 175,000 jobs during his first term.

McGuinty responded that for each job lost, three were created. 175,000 times three totals 525,000. That would equate 131,222 jobs per year created in Ontario without the HST.

If the HST is going to create 600,000 jobs over ten years, that equates 60,000 jobs per year on average. That represents a difference of 72,222 jobs per year. Over the course of ten years that would add up to 722,220 fewer jobs in Ontario than the Premier claims to have created during his first term.

Can Ontario really afford the benefits that Dalton McGuinty offers? The province will be locked in to the McGuinty deal until 2015, or, using the Premier's logic until Ontario is behind by 433.332 jobs.

That of course is just my opinion. As always your mileage may vary.

James Murray

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