Ontario’s industrial structure continues the decade-long shift from its traditional pillars of manufacturing and finance to government-directed investments in transportation and utilities. Before the recession, capital spending by manufacturing and finance reached $18.3 billion. Now, they total half that. In their place, investment in transportation and utilities has doubled from $10 billion to $20 billion. Instead of world-class factories and banks, Ontario now invests in mass transit and green-energy projects, mostly dictated by government.
[…]
The contrast between business investment in Quebec and Ontario shows that the billions poured into government infrastructure and green-energy projects has not “kick-started” Ontario’s business investment as the government hoped. In fact, the high taxes and electricity rates needed to pay for these schemes seems to be driving investment out of Ontario, especially from its manufacturing core. Slumping investment is hardly surprising since business confidence in Ontario is the lowest in Canada, with only 30 per cent of firms saying the province is headed in the right direction. Not even a lower dollar has made it worthwhile for firms to expand. Instead, Ontario’s building a magnificent transportation infrastructure to carry imported goods that used to be made here and to ferry commuters to jobs that will not materialize as long as business investment flounders.
Shocker, I know.
You mess with the bull, you get the horns. They voted the Liberals in, they get to live with the results. Same thing for all us Canuckistanians on a Federal level.
Socialism: an economy based on nothing but directives by those that have never worked.
does she have any background running a business? any business or economics degrees perhaps? gawd help us if these obscenely incompetents get in office again in 2018.
The whole green economy is driven by corrupt Cronyism, behind every initiative is a grubby crook….Even the Clinton Foundation is tagged as corrupt… NYT
The Ontario Liberal cronies are drowning in public cash..follow the money
Looks like the old stuff is starting to hit the wind turbines fanning the air and killing birds in Mother Hubbard Wynne’s Ontri-owe. It’s hitting people as they reach for their wallets and they’re empty. Typical of Liberals they’ll blame someone or something else as it’s hitting them in the face. Remember Mike Harris? Must be his fault.
government expenditures are never really investments because they rarely if ever show any rate of return.
I think Mr. Cross is somewhat mistaken in his analysis: “… Instead, Ontario’s building a magnificent transportation infrastructure to…” I’m not seeing the magnificence there.
It must be really bad if the CBC carries a story about it:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/werth-solar-customers-complaints-1.3576965
Great headline 🙂
“In fact, the high taxes and electricity rates needed to pay for these schemes seems to be driving investment out of Ontario…”
Unexpectedly!
“Remember Mike Harris? Must be his fault.”
It’s all Bill Davis’s fault!
Oh, why stop there? Premier Ferguson was the culprit! If he hadn’t encouraged the development of our industry and resources we wouldn’t be in this mess today (besides, he’s conveniently been dead for 70 years so he can’t defend himself)!
In other words: it was all somebody else’s fault, preferably some evil Tory patriarch too.
And under what carpet is Patrick Brown hiding?
What a useless prick. He’s been leader of the opposition for a year now, and the only thing he’s said that has made headlines is that he’s in favour of a carbon tax.
The Libertarian Party seems like the only alternative in this province – it’s either that, or stay home on election day.
The Right to Work States, and the people of Mexico would like to thank all of the high-minded, myopic, Liberal , unionized socialists of Canada, and especially Ontario, for the high paying manufacturing jobs we have gained after your Marxist leaders and unionized workforce has rejected them.
We will enjoy eating your lunch while you smugly marvel at your influx of uneducated, peasant Muslim invaders.
Thank you.
And under what carpet is Patrick Brown hiding?
What a useless prick. He’s been leader of the opposition for a year now, and the only thing he’s said that has made headlines is that he’s in favour of a carbon tax.
The Libertarian Party seems like the only alternative in this province – it’s either that, or stay home on election day.
I’m not sure why voters fail to understand that voting progressives means it’s going to be a tax and spend style of government. All the time, every time. Conservative politicians aren’t immune from this counterproductive economic style either but at least they generally understand the problems it creates.
The only winners in the tax and spend political game are favoured special interest groups. Usually this means the government unions and crony capitalists. The poor get a few crumbs left over after money filters through the many sticky fingers of the public service, committees, consultants and NGOs. In Ontario there’s also a disturbing amount of shady political fundraising, and back room deals. Ontario politicians aren’t even trying to hide their conflict of interest.
Why Ontario voters tolerate political corruption, skyrocketing debt and energy prices, the mis allocation of tax money from the public good to vanity projects and “investments” that enrich private interests and politicians is the mystery. Ask the members of Devine’s PC party what Saskatchewan does to crooked politicians. Then ask the Saskatchewan NDP why they barely have up enough MLAs to fill a booth at a coffee shop. Ontario is messed up because its progressive voters have turned a blind eye to political corruption. That’s why the rest of Canada should refuse to bail them out when Ontario faces the inevitable economic collapse.
“government-directed investments in transportation and utilities”
While it is easy to ridicule NDP’s Great leap Forward, it is still but a pipe dream of the Lewis-Klein clan; Ont has a government that intends to implement green excesses that would rival anything dreamed of in the Leap. A million electric powered golf carts on Ont highways, with power generated without using any fuel. Who dreams up this stuff?
An entire Canadian city was just evacuated with no loss of life, with organized convoys of gas/diesel powered vehicles. Tankers of fuel were dispatched so vehicles could be refueled by the roadside.
How would anyone want to be in such a lineup with an electric car? Or, sitting on 401 in a blizzard with the charge running down.
People like Wynne are totally lacking in common sense; they are unable to imagine a disaster striking Toronto, and the need for quick evacuation with suitable transportation equipment.
“People like Wynne are totally lacking in common sense…”
It’s concern about others that’s lacking in sociopaths. The ONLY future that exists for them is the next election.
Patrcik Brown hasn’t been hiding under any carpet. The MSM, as they did with Hudak and even Tory before him, pick and choose which stories we get to see and hear. Frankly, I’m okay with it. As long as Brown doesn’t step in it, the job is his in 2018.
Social spending is ideal for progressives. Almost zero accountability as results are subjective as contrasted to corporate results which actually have a ROI tagged to investment. The fundamental concept is that progressives are simply smarter people than those who actually toil away making a return. Heaven forbid that ‘return’ actually enters the discussion. If it does progressives either change the topic through their ‘media’ buddies or they pull out the standard ‘class warfare’ rationale.
The true irony is listening to clowns like Clinton and Sanders role out ‘class warfare’ as their rallying cry. Last I checked their standard bearer POTUS has been in power for 8 years now.
“Not even a lower dollar has made it worthwhile for firms to expand.”
That’s an excellent point to remember as well.
Never fear, to bolster Wynnemonics, Gerald,true ruler of Canada, will devalue the dollar to 40 cents US.
This will buy another election in Urban Ontario.
Ensuring the winning ways continue and stabilizing the power base for sunni days “national” party.
Dear taxpayers of Ontario, Toronto needs to become a city/province on its own.
Your democratic rights are being raped and pillaged by a mass of people who have nothing in common with you.
This is not just or fair.
Turn the Libtards plan to create a more “just and fair” voting system on its head.
Charter and democratic representation for rural canadians…
Now there is a place no progressive will dare to thread .
Reading an excellent book on Hillary by Edward Klein titled “Unlikable”. It is just stunning how corrupt the Clintons are and vicious Hillary is. The infighting with Obama, Valerie Jarrett and Michelle Obama is such that you wonder that anything is ever done about actually governing! The incestuous action going on with the politicians is just staggering. How this POS Hillary could ever be considered for POTUS is just frightening.
There is a real fear of Trump by both parties as he is not part of the Washington debacle and doesn’t need their money. There is billions of dollars in corruption that feel threatened by Trump if he wins so he had better tighten his security and with the Clintons it is worldwide.
The good news is that level of incompetence is stuck in Ontario. The bad news is the NDP in Alberta is hard at work to make the Ontario Liberals look like pikers.
UNEXPECTEDLY!
Or as Glenn Reynolds would say: THIS IS MY SHOCKED FACE.
Paraphrasing someone:
When I hear the word infrastructure I reach for my gun.
So true, Brown isn’t exactly the sharpest tack sitting as leader of the Opposition. When they call for money I just tell both the PC’s and the Federal Conservatives I can’t support stupidity. Then I add living in Wynne’s Ontario I can’t afford to donate a dime, takes all we can do to survive.
“Ontario’s industrial structure continues the decade-long shift from its traditional pillars of manufacturing and finance to government-directed investments in transportation and utilities.”
Well, that says it all right there, doesn’t it? If the manufacturing and finance jobs are going away, you don’t need the transportation and utilities as much.
Sure, wise investments in transportation and utilities are needed in a growing economy with a growing population of workers. “Wise” meaning “value for dollar” which sort of omits electric cars, bike trails, and wind turbines. But with the economy shrinking, and population growth pretty much confined to hordes of imported welfare leeches, those “investments” are not needed.
Spending to service Ontario’s DEBT is rising by 7.6% this year … healthcare spending is increasing by 1%. You do the math … because these leftists are incapable. Their degrees are in gender (read: male-bashing) studies.
Great line: “The bad news is the NDP in Alberta is hard at work to make the Ontario Liberals look like pikers.”
People voted for Wynne (as they did for McGuinty and Trudeau) because they lack the critical thinking skills and the ability to overlook party colours and vote sensibly necessary for keeping a country in satisfactory condition. When people are more moved by a guy prancing about in a vest overseeing damage done by a fire then any action done well before the fire wiped out sections of a city, one knows how mentally dense the population has become. Proportional representation might only bring in even more retarded candidates. Wynne’s corruption, lies, apathy, her perverted friend, Ben Levin, and her need to see this province in ashes would have had her kicked out in any other country. When people are satisfied that businesses are closing down, parents of autistic children are pulling out their hair and consumers pay more for electricity than most provinces, what one is dealing with is an electorate too bovine to know what is truly good for it.
Dead on Liz J. To a great extent we are in our present situation because of the incompetence and cowardice of the Ontario PC Party over the last ten years.
Brown could and should be pounding his desk and loudly demanding the resignation of Wynne and her crew of rats for their plans to drive Ontario further into the economic ground. Instead, he demonstrates that he has no real concern about what a couple of more years of windmills and solar panel construction will have on our future – so he sits there and says nothing, smug in the belief that the next election is “in the bag”.
It’s Probably Notling.
Varcoe: Power industry turmoil leaves NDP juggling many issues at once
Plus a couple bill$ to pay off the cancelled generating contracts.
Yep, green energy investors are giddy and excited about getting guaranteed profits from the next suckers, err…government investments.
Should be profitable for BC hydro and Saskatchewan too. Saskatchewan should build new electricity ties to Alberta to sell Alberta natgas power at premium pricing and buy Alberta’s wind and solar oversupply cheap or free. Someone might as well profit off this folly. Better yet, get the Feds to pay for the ties under the infrastructure program. Call it strengthening and uniting the East-West power grid instead of making insane profits ftom NDP green energy policies.
Patrick Brown is just the latest Tim Hudak, masquerading as the PC saviour. He fooled a lot of people, including the otherwise agreeable Monte McNaughton. Christine Elliott had the brains, the experience, and the toughness to take on Premier Wynne. Brown, like Hudak, talked a good game, but I think that Ontarians, particularly conservatives, will tire of him in short order. Elliott was hurt by her loyalty to the party, serving as deputy-leader under the insipid Hudak. I think that she deserved a chance, and that she would have made something of it.
regarding electric power and the wynnter of our discontent, happened on a copy of some agricultural publication @ Timmies. Lead story was a private members bill to address the terrible losses and suffering caused by high voltage leakage into the surrounding ground. 16 billion with a ‘b’ is the estimate to solve it over all the affected areas. kinda makes me think THAT would be a vastly better target of the money being squandered of the green pipe dream.
dairy cattle stop production, hemorrhage after birthing, mortality is up, the farmers also are affected healthwise.
gawd help this sad old province if they get back in gubbamint in 2018.
Panama.
Venezuela.
the high priest’s of of Ontario ..
how many do she have?
if it’s good enough for Ontario.
then the nation should fall in line.
they keep breaking into our house!
these people are
fcuking tyrnets!
The question is who are the thirty percent that think it’s headed in the right direction. Because if that is what they think know people should know who they are so they can direct their investments and money away from them. On the other hand, I’m so sick of this crap that I am prone to saying fck it, let it collapse and burn. Give them what they want. By it i mean the economy.
“who are the thirty percent that think it’s headed in the right direction…”
You’d be surprised. This (incredible) statement from David Akin a few days ago: “They go to the polls in 2018 in Ontario where, right now at least, the economy is doing very well.”
http://blogs.canoe.com/davidakin/politics/its-the-economy-stupid-actually-maybe-only-sometimes-probably/
McGuinty is back pitching various birdblenders for Innergex Renewable Energy.
There’s a company that needs investigating