TORONTO – The Ontario government’s budget will not be balanced when it is delivered on March 28, the finance minister said Wednesday, reversing a key Liberal promise as the province prepares for a spring election.
Charles Sousa said the province will run a deficit of less than one percent of its gross domestic product starting next year, a move he said was meant to boost growth and allow more investment in key areas such as healthcare and childcare.
Just months ago @SousaCharles was boasting about his government's so-called "balanced" budget. But, in the end it's just yet another broken promise from the Wynne Liberals https://t.co/9RlqngB38T #onpoli
— Ontario PC Press (@PCPressOffice) March 7, 2018
Another broken promise was delivered by the Wynne Liberals early this afternoon, plunging the province back into a deficit. In the Liberal line-up of broken promises, an unbalanced budget is the latest addition to their record of mismanagement and waste.
How can families trust a government when they say one thing and then do the complete opposite?
It seems the only promise the Wynne Liberals can keep, is that they will continue to look out for their own political interests and their insider friends. For 15 years, they’ve put their interests first, all to the detriment of hard-working Ontario families.
Here’s what Finance Minister Charles Sousa said just months ago:
“We have outperformed and as a result, we’re coming to balance next year and the year after that.”
“I will confirm that we will balance the budget. In fact, last year we beat our targets by just over $3 billion. And I will confirm that we are on track to deliver balanced budgets for the next two years as well.”
“The government is projecting balanced budgets in 2017–18 through to 2019–20.”
“We’re looking at a balanced budget in this coming budget… next year as well, and the year after that…”
“[Mr. Sousa vowed] … that the province’s books will remain balanced until the end of the decade.”
