The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is disappointed that the Ontario budget fails to present a clear plan to deal with the deficit while the debt continues to soar. 

“Families and small businesses all across Ontario are having to make plans for their financial future, even during uncertain times and the provincial government should be doing the same thing,” said Jay Goldberg, Interim Ontario Director for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. “Ontario taxpayers deserve to see a plan to get the province’s finances in order, and the Ford government’s refusal to present a concrete plan is simply unacceptable.”

“The number one thing we were looking for in the budget was a credible plan to deal with the deficit. Ontarians can’t just ignore their credit card bills and the province shouldn’t either. The Ford government needs to offer an achievable plan to balance the budget in the medium term. Taxpayers can’t wait.”

The Ontario deficit is now $33.1 billion. While total spending is down by $4.2 billion from last year, spending for 2021-22 is up by $2.7 billion from what the government projected that expenses would be this year in its budget presented in November 2020. Interest charges on the debt will cost Ontario taxpayers $13.1 billion this year.

“Ontarians will spend over $1 billion per month on debt interest payments this year,” said Goldberg. “That’s more than Ontario spends on post-secondary education. If interest rates increase in the years ahead, debt interest payments will skyrocket even further.

“Controlling spending is hard, but procrastinating will only make it harder. The Ford government needs to focus on finding savings to get Ontario’s finances back on track.”