At the Burlington Convention Centre Ontario Premier Doug Ford was the Halton Chambers of Commerce guest of honour on Tuesday, April 9th. The room filled with applause as he entered the room. The crowd ranged from our local councillors to major business owners. Also Terrence Young, the newly nominated Federal Conservative Candidate came out to hear what the Premier had to say.
Halton’s four chambers of commerce:
- Burlington
- Halton Hills
- Milton
- Oakville
The premier spoke for several minutes about the state of the Ontario economy, regularly using the catch phrases: “Ontario is open for Business" and "Putting People First". His address was followed by a question and answer period.
His business focused address was appropriate for the audience, though he did make a point of mentioning that the Ontario government was not going to slice services such as education and healthcare. He pointed out that they have already found savings of $3.5 billion in what was consider low hanging fruit.
He made a point to praise the Federal Liberals for providing $1 Billion to the province. However, his frustration about the new Federal Carbon Tax was palpable. He vowed that Ontario’s government would fight to cut the Federal carbon tax.
Cutting Red Tape
Another major issue for this government is cutting red tape. According to Premier Ford, small to medium-sized businesses spend on average $33,000 annually dealing with red tape. He also cited a gold mine in northern Ontario that waited 7 years before it was granted approval to proceed.
Affordable Housing
Premier Doug Ford was also asked about the lack of affordable housing, which also related back to red-tape. As an example, his daughter and son-in-law recently purchased a townhouse in Milton for $980,000, a substantial sum for a young couple. In order to increase affordability, the government intends to make it easier to increase the right type of supply in the right places. Increasing Housing Supply
One-Stop-Shop
Another idea the Premier referenced was a one stop shop for business applications and permits. The one-stop-shop would eliminate duplication, and shorten waiting times.
Regional Review
Regarding regional review, the premier indicated that no decisions had been made. The premier’s thought was that municipalities would be given the option to either opt-in or out, similar to how the government rolled out the retailing of marijhauna. Each community had the option to either allow retail marijuana shops or not.
Oakville Mayor Rob Burton stated, "The Premier left me eager to find out what our choices will be when he (Premier Ford) said, "So, I really believe and it goes back to my roots of being a councillor, we have to empower the cities and the towns themselves. Nothing is worse than the province, you know, dictating this, that and the other thing. That’s why we always say, “Opt in or opt out.” And that’s what we’re focusing on more. Let the communities decide." I know Oakville definitely likes to make its own decisions and choose its own future."
The strongest round of applause for the premier came when he stated that there are far too many politicians.