Ontario NDP leader to focus on job creation

By Richard Riosa

Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath has reiterated her party’s focus on job creation.

Horwath appeared Sept. 25 at the Giovanni Caboto Club as a guest speaker for the Windsor-Essex Chamber of Commerce. Her speech outlined the party’s major policies and spoke directly to what she considers are Windsor’s biggest issues.

“I think people know that Ontario continues to face challenges,” said Horwath. “Windsor shares those challenges and has unique challenges of its own, but we can spur growth and build a truly shared prosperity if we’re willing to confront these challenges.”

The challenges Horwath is referring to are high unemployment rates and a general lack of corporate investment in local businesses and job creation. She said Ontario has lost 30 per cent of its manufacturing jobs within the last eight years and investment as a share of GDP has declined.

Horwath also said there is a need to shift away from old ideologies that don’t work in the real World.

“It is pretty clear that the solutions that have been brought forward by the Liberals over the last decade – and frankly the conservatives before them – aren’t working,” said Horwath.

She said Ontario is in need of a new approach in order to balance the books and create jobs.

“Reduction of corporate tax rates isn’t creating jobs, it’s not creating investment and we see all kinds of money being sat on by companies, but they’re not investing and they’re not hiring,” said Horwath.

The solution according to Horwath is to create tax incentives for investment within Ontario and to not tax small businesses. She said this approach has been used and has worked in other provinces. She also said provincial governments need to ensure investment leads to value-added production.

Federal NDP MP Brian Masse (Windsor West) also attended the speech. He said he agreed with and supported Horwath’s plans for creating new jobs in Ontario.

“When we (the NDP) amended the Liberal budget back in 2006 we stopped large corporate tax cuts to large businesses, but we kept the tax cuts for small businesses in tact because we know that small businesses are often the driver of the economy,” said Masse.

Masse said NDP governments balance budgets and bring financial stability.

Although many citizens have come to him to discuss the unemployment rate and lack of jobs, he said he is confident that positive change will occur with Horwath in charge of the Ontario NDP.

“I feel good with where Andrea (Horwath) is going,” said Masse. “I see a lot of similarities with her and Jack Leighton when we made our big breakthrough.”

While the Chamber of Commerce itself takes no sides politically, president Matt Marchand said he was glad to host a speaker of such importance. Marchand said he hopes the local business community can take some positives out of Horwath’s speech to help improve Windsor’s economy without hurting its citizens.

“Working people built this town and it’s not in anybody’s interest to put the squeeze on the middle class,” said Horwath. “Ultimately, people are the economy.”