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Conservative Opposition Leader Calls For Energy Minister’s Resignation
News from Ontario’s Conservative Party
Queen’s Park, December 2015 – This December 3rd in the Legislature, Leader of the Official Opposition Patrick Brown grilled the Premier on how the Liberal Government’s mishandling of the electricity sector is costing ratepayers billions of dollars.
Ontario Opposition Leader Patrick Brown calls for resignation of this guy – Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli – after Auditor General’s report reveals billions of dollars of mismanagement in energy field.
The Auditor General’s report highlighted that as a result of Liberal mismanagement, between 2006 and 2014, the people of Ontario have been overcharged $37 billion for electricity. What’s more, ratepayers will continue to be overcharged another $133 billion dollars over the next 18 years – resulting in a total of $170 billion in unnecessary costs to ratepayers.
“After yesterday’s scathing report from the Auditor General many people on that side of the aisle have questions to answer,” stated Leader Patrick Brown to the Ontario Liberal Caucus.
Leader Patrick Brown added, “This Minister (Ontario’s Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli) will have overcharged an average family $32,000 dollars more than they should have paid. With that money a family could buy one of the last Windsor-made Dodge Grand Caravans this year. It covers the cost of 4 years’ worth of tuition at the University of Ottawa – it could have put that household’s child through university with what they are being overcharged.”
Not only did the Liberal Government overcharge Ontario residents, it’s overspending on unnecessary programs as well. The Auditor General revealed that electricity consumers will pay $9.2 billion more for under the Ministry’s current program than they would have paid under the previous program.
“This isn’t about the merits of renewable energy – this is about the political deals that cost the taxpayers,” Leader Patrick Brown continued. “The Government could have had the exact same renewable energy program if they would have listened to the experts.”
“How does this Minister (Chiarelli) still have a job? Will he save the Premier the trouble and resign?”
Niagara At Large also encourages you to read the following story, headlined ‘Ontarians overpaying for electicity – Poor planning and political meddling drove up costs for consumers, who doled out $37-billion more than market price, report finds” in the December 3rd, 2015 edition of The Globe and Mail. You can read it by clicking on – http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/editorials/ontarios-liberals-have-completely-broken-the-electricity-system/article27571292/ .
Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary for and from the greater bi-national Niagara region.
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Niagara At Large 
One thing is for sure in this very broken dream of Sir Adam Beck’s: It is not Liberal government incompetence pumping up hydro rates. Its corruption…and it didn’t start with this Liberal government.
The gas plant scandals, outrageous rates paid for green power, the break up of Ontario Hydro, the privatization of 1/3 of Ontario’s generating capacity (Bruce Power), etc all had their origins with the Harris government.
I find it very ingenuous the opposition Progressive Conservatives now claim to be on our side. They are in fact as much to blame for our generating and grid problems as the Liberals.
Remember Harris’ Omnibus bills which allowed him to dismantle the safe guards put in place to protect the gigantic public investment that was to be Ontario’s power generating and distribution system back when the Ontario Hydro Commission formed? Sir Adam Beck and legislatures at the time knew the potential profits of Ontario Hydro would have vulture capitalists salivating like a hungry pack of dogs behind a pizza shop.
Beck fought long and hard against an opposition – which already recognized the potential profits returned to Ontario taxpayers – but finally prevailed.
Had Harris left Hydro alone in 1998 (I think), Hydro’s debt would be retired – without adding extra to our hydro bills; we would have still had near the lowest hydro bills in the country, not the highest; the gas plants, if they were ever commissioned, would have been Hydro owned. Cancelling would have cost millions, not billions; green power would have been developed by Hydro on command of the government to the Hydro Commission without subsidies; The biggest give-away, Bruce Power, would still be Hydro property.
We continue to elect governments which march us backwards. The reasons are many. The bottom line is voters are not given accurate nor timely information by the media or campaign rhetoric on which to make informed judgements.
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Wynne makes Harris look good! The Opposition should be demanding Wynne’s resignation… Chiarelli is just doing her ‘dirty work’ to pay back her financial supporters
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