It’s time for Ontario to be “Open for Business” – Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford

A Ford government would “cut corporate income taxes” and “cut red tape and stifling regulations to enable investment and good job growth.”

A News Release from Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford’s election campaign

Posted May 15th, 2018 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Falls, Ontario – An Ontario PC Government will bring good jobs back to Ontario and make the province “Open for Business”, Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford announced today.

Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford on the campaign trail.

“Under Kathleen Wynne, good jobs aren’t being created, at least not in Ontario,” said Ford (during a campaign stop in Niagara Falls this May 14th). “Today, Buffalo and Niagara are bragging about all the jobs they’re taking from us, because of Kathleen Wynne’s high hydro rates, high taxes, and red tape.” 
 
Ford announced that an Ontario PC Government will take meaningful action to stop the bleeding of jobs across the border and bring quality jobs back home.
 
“We’re going to put up a big sign on the border that says ‘Ontario is open for Business’” said Ford.

“Instead of picking winners and losers, we are going to lower business taxes for everyone. We are going to stabilize business hydro costs for everyone. We are going to cut red tape for everyone.”
 
Ford contrasted his approach with that of the current government which is ignoring the problem.
 
“There’s an alarm going off in this province,” said Ford. “Every few days we hear it: a factory is closing, a car parts plant is being built in Michigan instead of here, a greenhouse is going to Ohio, where hydro costs are half as much as in Ontario. I hear this alarm loud and clear. But Kathleen Wynne keeps hitting snooze.”
 
Ford highlighted how the Kathleen Wynne Liberal Government has failed Ontario workers during their long 15 years in power. Ford also pointed out that the NDP’s demands for more and more red tape would drive even more jobs out of the province.
 
“Do you want to know the difference between the Liberals and the NDP,” Ford asked. “With the Liberals, your neighbour loses their job. With the NDP, you lose yours.”
 
Ford concluded, “we are going to bring those good jobs back home.”

Backgrounder – Open for Business 

Doug Ford slams Ontario Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne for saddling the province with some of the highest hydro rates in North America.

The Status Quo:

• Ontario has lost more than 300,000 good paying manufacturing jobs since the Liberals took power in 2003,[1] and Ontario businesses are struggling because of the increased cost of doing business in the province.
• Businesses in Ontario need relief from the Liberal’s hydro mess, the rapid increase to the minimum wage, the cap-and-trade scam, and the increasing red tape and regulatory burden.
• For instance, under the Liberals, hydro rates have tripled. Kathleen Wynne has given Ontario some of the highest hydro rates in North America.[2] Our Class B industrial rates (most medium sized business) are the worst in Canada and uncompetitive with most of our American neighbours, and our Class A industrial rates (large manufacturers) are not much better.[3]
• Despite bleeding jobs to other jurisdictions, the Liberals nonetheless decided to break their promise to reduce taxes on businesses by forcing Ontario employers to continue to pay an 11.5% tax rate.
• While the Liberals tout job growth and low unemployment rates, stats show that between  2008 and 2016, nearly 99% of all net new jobs in Ontario were created in Toronto and Ottawa,[4] which demonstrates the need for better job growth across the province.
• The Wynne Liberals have also attacked Ontario businesses with intrusive regulations and duplicative approval processes – Ontario has 380,000 regulations, almost double that of some other provinces, and the most of any province in Canada.
  [5]
• The Canadian Federation of Independent Business found that regulations in Ontario cost businesses $15 billion in 2017 – more than double the amount for any Canadian province.[6] 

How We Will Fix It:

Like his friend and former Ontario PC premier Mike Harris, Doug Ford hopes to make the province “open for business” again by cutting taxes and slashing regulations and red tape.

A Doug Ford Ontario PC Government will make Ontario “Open for Business” by implementing policies that make it easier to invest, start, and grow a business in Ontario.

To do this, the Ontario PCs will implement a comprehensive set of policies. We will:

• Stabilize industrial hydro rates through a package of aggressive reforms.
• Cut corporate income taxes from 11.5% to 10.5% to stay competitive with our neighbours and enable businesses to create good paying jobs.
• Cut red tape and stifling regulations to enable investment and good job growth.
• A Doug Ford Ontario PC Government will also cut the red tape and stifling regulations that are crippling job creation and growth, and introduce a customer service guarantee: a one window access for approvals with hard deadlines.
• This will be done by expanding the ‘Small Business Access Initiative’ to assist all businesses with navigating Ontario’s regulatory and legislative hurdles that harm business.
• The Ontario PCs will also mandate the Treasury Board to conduct an aggressive review of Ontario’s industries to identify red tape and duplicative assessments in effort to reduce the regulatory burden on businesses.
• Together, these policies will create an environment that makes it easier for businesses to operate and grow in Ontario

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