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Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
SNOBELEN: Reflecting on the Common Sense Revolution three decades later
Former Ontario Premier Mike Harris waves to Tim Hudak as he was acknowledged by Ontario PC leader Tim Hudak speaking to the Canadian Club at the Sheraton Centre in downtown Toronto on Friday May 30, 2014. Photo by Michael Peake / Michael Peake/Toronto Sun/QMI Ag On June 8, a gaggle of old warriors will mark a rare collision of common sense and courage. It will be a quiet event, but 30 years ago, this unlikely team set the world (or at least Ontario) on fire. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account It was election day on June 8, 1995, in Ontario. I spent the day watching my sister Kathie run an amazing get-out-the-vote effort that capped six weeks of campaigning with friends and neighbours. It felt good to know that, regardless of the outcome, we had collectively worked our butts off. There was nothing left in the tank. But the outcome was not certain. At the start of that election, Lyn McLeod and the Liberals had a comfortable, double-digit lead in the polls. The taste of a 1990 defeat for the PC Party (and this rookie candidate) lingered as the hours dripped away. Some campaigns are riskier than others. In 1995, Mike Harris and a young campaign team broke all the rules with a bold, detailed election platform called the Common Sense Revolution, released a full year before election day. On election day, voters would determine if that strategy was incredibly brave or simply naive. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Turns out it was brave. But the courage didn't end on June 8. A few weeks later, Premier Mike Harris presented his caucus with a stark appraisal of the economic conditions facing Ontario. The facts were simple — in the year since the Common Sense Revolution platform was released, the economy of Ontario had declined, eroding the foundation of the plan. I remember a sinking feeling that this was the moment when all the hard work over five years would begin to crumble. No plan survives first contact, and predictably, the Harris government would soften bold intentions in the face of reality. What happened next set the tone for the Harris government. Having laid out the harsh realities, Harris told his caucus that the plan would have to adapt. We would need to be bolder and move faster. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Harris was unreasonable. Which is why, 30 years later, he remains my benchmark for courageous leadership. Much has been written about the Harris government. A good bit of it is nonsense that became an urban myth. But, by any account, Harris impacted Ontario in meaningful ways and altered the future of the province. One of the young revolutionaries, Alister Campbell, recently edited a collection of well-researched opinions on the long-term impact of the Harris government's policies and initiatives. The book, The Harris Legacy: Reflections On A Transformational Premier, should be required reading for anyone wishing to do the impossible. I don't spend much time looking back. Life doesn't move in that direction. But anniversaries have a way of prompting a backward glance. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Thirty years on, it is remarkable how many of the issues left hanging at the end of the Harris government remain not only unresolved, but also unaddressed. These are recurring problems that governments either ignore or disguise. School boards continue to be quaint relics of the single schoolroom past, forever impeding the evolution of education. Conservation authorities, a watershed management structure invented 70 years ago, continue to impede, not inform, wise land management. Red tape grows exponentially every time it is cut. Three decades later, several things seem obvious. First, the job is never done. Second, the intersection of courage and common sense is both extremely rare and amazingly powerful. And, finally, 30 years is too long to wait for another revolution. Olympics NHL Toronto & GTA Editorial Cartoons Ontario
CBC
26-03-2025
- Business
- CBC
What the federal parties can learn from Doug Ford's election win
After a provincial election campaign fought in the shadow of U.S. President Donald Trump's threats of tariffs and annexation, federal parties could draw some lessons from the way Doug Ford and his Ontario PC Party romped to victory. Ford pitched himself as the best leader to protect the province against those threats and even made "Protect Ontario" his campaign slogan. His campaign focused almost exclusively on that one issue and he was rewarded with a third straight majority government, something no leader has accomplished in Ontario since 1959. It's a formula that strategists of all political stripes say the federal leaders should emulate if they hope to win the general election on April 28. Kory Teneycke, who managed all three of Ford's provincial campaigns and advised Stephen Harper during his time as prime minister, says the federal parties must acknowledge what matters to voters right now. "The number one issue driving voter intent in the Ontario provincial campaign was clearly Trump and tariffs," said Teneycke in an interview. "There's a lot of national polling data that would indicate that the same is true now in the federal election campaign, only even more so." WATCH | What Doug Ford's election win can teach the federal leaders: It's almost impossible to win federally in Canada without winning Ontario. Over the past 50 years, the party that took the most seats in Ontario won 14 of the last 15 elections. The only exception: when Stephen Harper's Conservatives won their first minority, in 2006. 'The only issue in this election' It's rare to have a federal election follow so closely on the heels of an Ontario election; rarer still to have the same political theme resonate so profoundly in both contests. "The only issue in this election is protecting Canada and Trump and tariffs," said Marion Nader, co-founder of consulting firm Nexus Strategy Group and a veteran adviser to New Democrat politicians in Ontario and Alberta. "If any party tries to make the ballot question anything other than Trump, then they're going to get drowned out and they're going to be irrelevant," Nader said in an interview. Nader says a key to the election will be how each federal leader frames their message on the Trump and tariffs issue. "I think what what Canadians want is someone who's going to unify, talk about solutions, be the adult in the room," she said. Teneycke believes the Trump presidency and his repeated threat of tariffs poses a particular challenge for Poilievre, but not an insurmountable one. Poilievre's Conservative team did "an incredible job" in laying the groundwork over the past two-plus years to fight an election against Justin Trudeau on the carbon tax, affordability and housing, says Teneycke. Many Ontario voters strongly against Trump "The situation has changed," he said. "You've got to fight the campaign that's ahead of you, not the one that you wanted to fight necessarily." Teneycke says the Ontario PC campaign's research found large numbers of voters vehemently opposed to Trump and everything about him. He says the only time he saw the party's polling numbers dip during the campaign was after a camera caught Ford saying he was "100 per cent" happy that Trump had won the presidential election last November. The lesson for Poilievre, according to Teneycke: avoid sounding anything like Trump, whether in words or tone. "Talking about your big, beautiful, bring-it-home tax cut, talking about sneaky Carney, talking about fake news, these are all lines pulled from the lexicon of of Trump," he said. "Probably the worst of them is saying Canada First, which sounds, I think to a lot of voters, like America First." WATCH | Compare the income tax cut promises from the Liberals and Conservatives: How do Carney and Poilievre's income tax cuts compare? | About That 12 hours ago Duration 8:30 The federal election campaign is officially underway and among the first promises of the leading parties is an income tax cut. Andrew Chang breaks down the math behind the two plans to explain how much you would save, and why experts are skeptical about how either would pay for it. CBC News asked the Conservative Party to respond to Teneycke's comments. "Pierre Poilievre has been talking about his plan to put Canada First and make Canada stronger in order to stand up to Trump, and will continue to do so," said a party spokesperson in an email. While the CBC Poll Tracker suggests the Conservative Party has lost more than seven percentage points nationally since Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, Teneycke thinks it's not impossible for Poilievre to win back those voters. 'Hard to change a ballot question' Ashley Csanady, who worked as an adviser on the Ontario Liberal campaign, saw firsthand how difficult it is to fight an election on any issue other than tariffs at this time in Canada. "It's pretty hard to change a ballot question when you have something that's as big and as looming as the shadow of Donald Trump and our largest trading relationship," said Csanady, a vice-president at McMillan Vantage, a public affairs firm. In the past Ontario election, Bonnie Crombie's Liberals campaigned largely on fixing the health care system, and although they attracted nearly 30 per cent of the vote provincewide, that only translated into 14 of a total 124 seats. "The overall take away is that when voters are are looking at Trump and tariffs and they're scared about what's going on, they're voting based on who they think is the best option to take on that threat," Csanady said. In the federal election, Csanady believes this gives the advantage to Liberal Leader Mark Carney. "The fact that he sort of presents as this kind of boring dad, technocrat, smart guy economist is actually a superpower right now, she said. "I think with all the bombast coming out of the States, that calm presentation is the sort of thing that Canadians are looking for." Nader, the NDP strategist, says a key lesson for the federal party from the Ontario election is the value of targeting key ridings with extra campaign support. The Ontario New Democrats won 27 seats — nearly double the Liberal total — with less than 19 per cent of the vote share province-wide. She also says NDP leader Jagmeet Singh can win over voters by pitching his campaign message in a way that speaks to people's concerns. "It is about Trump and who's going to be best to stand up to Trump, but reframe it," said Nader. "Who is going to be prioritized in that battle? Who's going to stand up for families and workers?" There's a long-held notion in politics that incumbency is an advantage when contesting an election in times of crisis. The Progressive Conservative victory in Ontario — in which only two of the party's incumbents seeking re-election lost their seats — would appear to bolster that notion. The federal Liberals, who took 78 of Ontario's 121 seats in the last federal election, will be hoping that pattern from the provincial election in late February repeats itself come voting day in late April.
CBC
25-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
Ontario to increase beer fee, hitting Beer Store, private retail, bars, restaurants
Social Sharing Ontario's liquor agency is increasing a fee it charges brewers, a move that would boost the cost of beer for all retailers, restaurants and bars in the province. The move by the LCBO comes just days before the provincial election on Thursday. The LCBO posted information about the fee increase on its website Monday within hours of Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford unveiling a new campaign promise to scrap the province's mandatory minimum prices for alcohol. The increase is set to take effect on April 1. It amounts to a 4.4 per cent jump in what the LCBO calls "cost of service," a levy that applies to all beer products — whether imported or domestic — sold at retail outlets such as The Beer Store, supermarkets, convenience stores and brewery retail outlets, as well as on beer distributed to bars and restaurants. For beer sold at a retailer, the fee is currently set at 74.11 cents per litre and would rise to 77.37 cents per litre in April. That translates to a total of $8.78 on a case of 24 "Tall Boy" (473 ml) cans, a 37-cent increase from the current rate. Retailers are not obligated to pass on the fee increase to consumers, but if they don't, the hike will eat into their profits. The cost of service fee levied on beer distributed to bars and restaurants is lower than the fee applied to the retail outlets, but is also set to rise by 4.4 per cent. CBC News asked the LCBO on Tuesday morning to explain the rationale behind the increase, but the agency has yet to reply. 'Beer will be more expensive' Ontario's craft beer industry is blasting the fee hike, saying it will increase prices for beer drinkers "At a time when supporting local has never been more important in the face of U.S. tariffs, these LCBO fee increases are the wrong move at the wrong time," said Scott Simmons, president of Ontario Craft Brewers, in a statement provided to CBC News. The fee increases "only mean one thing — beer will be more expensive for consumers," said Simmons. He is calling on all parties in the election campaign to commit to reversing the fee increase and to lower other taxes on Ontario-owned craft brewers. WATCH | Ford's PCs release a platform, just 3 days before the election: What Ford is promising in the Ontario PCs' election platform 20 hours ago Duration 2:26 Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford released his party's election platform on Monday. As CBC's Lorenda Reddekopp reports, it includes tariff-related proposals and billions of dollars in new spending. However, it's unclear how a re-elected PC government would pay for it all. Liberalizing alcohol sales and keeping booze prices down has been a dominant theme of Ford's time in government. His move to open alcohol sales to convenience stores last summer will cost taxpayers at least $600 million, according to an analysis by the province's Financial Accountability Office, released one day before Ford triggered the snap election. The PC platform released on Monday contained a new promise to scrap Ontario's long-established minimum retail price for liquor. In a news conference, Ford described the rationale for Ontario's minimum-price law — that it prevents over-consumption of alcohol — as "the biggest joke I've ever heard." Ford said scrapping the minimum price would "put more money back into people's pockets again, and that's like a tax break."
CBC
25-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
Ontario campaign does little to solve financial crisis among cities
Social Sharing Local politicians were all smiles when Ontario PC leader Doug Ford made a multi-billion dollar promise to upload responsibility for the Ottawa's struggling LRT — a pledge also made by Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie, with the NDP and Greens opting for a pledge to restore operational transit funding. It's by far the biggest campaign promise for the capital, and one of the most high-ticket promises made for any city. But municipalities have had another issue at the top of their wishlists, albeit with far less flash. "Cities need a different way of creating revenue. That would solve for everything," Laine Johnson, a councillor for Ottawa's college ward, said. Municipalities say years of provincial and federal downloading, including responsibility for increasingly complex social issues, have made the situation untenable. "It's boring. You can't cut a ribbon on that," said Johnson. "But the centre cannot hold." Paying for services Without other revenue sources, cities must predominantly rely on property taxes. Riley Brockington, another Ottawa city councillor and board member with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, said that inevitably leads to large tax hikes. "Property taxes were never intended to pay for things like social services and the health crisis that is the homelessness, mental health, addictions crisis unfolding on our streets," explained Marianne Meed Ward, mayor of Burlington and chair of Ontario Big City Mayors. She noted the calls for a new fiscal framework are coming from all municipal organizations. Ontario spending on homelessness 'stagnate' while problem worsens, new report says Toronto's not alone in looking at property tax hikes. These municipalities are too "We are all aligned. And I don't know that I've ever seen that in my 15 or so years in elected office," said Meed Ward. The current system of funding major projects is overly bureaucratic and makes it impossible for cities to make long-term plans, according to Meed Ward. "It's like The Hunger Games of funding and it doesn't guarantee us the revenue that we need," she said. Why not now? Meed Ward would like to see more flexible funding similar to the gas tax, which grows with populations, reduces the administrative burden, and provides certainty at a time when an impending trade war threatens to derail local economies. She said Ford's three main competitors are all open to a new financial relationship, which is progress, adding that OCBM had "good dialogue" with the government prior to the campaign. But the issue has failed to break through as a main election concern. It's not an easy headline nor an easy vote-getter for the PCs, which Myer Siemiatycki, professor emeritus of politics at Toronto Metropolitan University, say have effectively set the election agenda. He said Ford has made big-ticket promises in areas with the most seats — including the Ottawa LRT uploading, a tunnel under Highway 401, and the redevelopment of Ontario Place — focusing on the "pathway to becoming premier" regardless of what municipal politicians might choose to prioritize. Other parties have struggled to turn the conversation toward social issues, though Siemiatycki applauds AMO for its "cheeky" and "aggressive" campaign telling Ontarians to 'vote like your quality of life on it.' "Municipalities need tax sources beyond the property tax. Regrettably, that's not what we have heard on the campaign trail," Siemiatycki said. "On that front, I would imagine that this campaign has been a disappointment to municipal politicians." Uploading responsibilities Alexander Wray, a research scientist at Western University, agreed the party platforms provide nothing "groundbreaking." "Nobody's discussing how we're going to give municipalities new revenue tools that they can use to raise revenue and pay for different programs and services as well as address some of the downloading that's occurred over the last 20 years," he said, suggesting local sales taxes should be put on the table. Beyond Ottawa's LRT promise, several parties have suggested uploading responsibility for social issues. The NDP has specifically mentioned emergency shelters. Wray calls that a "non-starter" which simply shifts money around while opening the door to politicization. Johnson has her own concerns. "Cities are essential for hyperlocal responsiveness where people are at. I get a little concerned when the solution to some of our problems is that the province actually gets to assume greater parts of our programs," she said. Provincial overrides Brockington said provincial responsibilities shouldn't be paid for off the backs of local taxpayers, noting paramedic, long-term care and childcare costs. He warns that without intervention "huge" property tax hikes will be inevitable. "We need the provincial government to acknowledge that there are provincial services that municipalities are offering and that has to be again reexamined and uploaded back to the province," he said. Siemiatycki notes another issue that's come sharply into focus over the past term — provincial involvement in municipal issues. "We've got a premier who wants to decide where there should and shouldn't be bike lanes, where there should and shouldn't be safe injection sites, how traffic should move in cities," he said. The PC platform also suggests a desire to restrict the placement of speed enforcement cameras and upload building approvals for some infrastructure projects. While the fiscal issue can feel "dry," Brockington implored voters to consider it.
CBC
12-02-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Ford is taking his anti-tariff message to the U.S. Has it worked?
Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford is in Washington for the second day, where he and other Canadian premiers are attempting to spread an anti-tariff message to a U.S. audience. CBC reporter Mike Crawley has more on how the trip has been so far.
