After months of propping up the Liberal minority government, the NDP under the leadership of Andrea Horwath decided to pull the plug on the Liberals and force an election on June 12th, 2014. So what does the NDP stand for? What's their platform going into this election?

Below is a link taken from their website.....

http://ontariondp.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Plan-for-affordable-change.pdf

The NDP call their plan a one of "affordable change". Really a plan of affordable change from a party that ruined Ontario back in the 1990's. The NDP plan is much of the same far left socialist ideas that have gotten Ontario into trouble in the past. The NDP want to raise takes on the top 2%, raise corporate taxes by about 12%, create an Ontario pension plan...Hey wait a minute this kind of sounds like the Liberals most recent budget that the NDP would not support.

While most people like Andrea Horwath as a leader, when compared to Hudak and Wynne they don't like her party and what they stand for. Well known pundit, Warren Kinsella on his facebook page claims that the NDP will win this election. Really Warren you know a hell of a lot about politics, but I think you are way off on your prediction.

If you want to find out more about the NDP, please visit their website at www.ontariondp.com 

Ontario PC Party

This post will focus on the Ontario PC Party lead by Tim Hudak. The main part of the platform for the PC Party is the creation of 1 million jobs. Hudak's plan is divided into 5 major sections which are listed below and taken directly from the PC website. My take on each of the 5 areas will be listed below the heading:

1. LOWER TAXES AND LESS DEBT

The first step in our plan is to produce more jobs and increase take-home pay through lower taxes and less debt.

Nobody likes to pay taxes, and we all want to take home more money. Saying that you want to produce more jobs and increase take home pay is easy, but how do you intend to do it? Ontario has very little natural resources that we can export, and as a result we rely on our manufacturing sector to create good paying jobs. Ontario was one of the hardest hit Provinces when the recession hit. Our largest trading partner, the United States were not buying our products, and as a result our manufacturing sector was hit very hard. Corporate taxes in Ontario are one of the lowest in Canada, and while the US economy is on an upswing, the high US dollar is further preventing Americans from re-locating to Ontario. When you can make a product in China and India for a tenth of the cost of what it would be in Ontario would you not, as a business person make that product elsewhere? 

For Ontario to prosper, we need leadership that will focus on creating jobs for the 21st century in the Hi-Tech sector, this is the future of Ontario.

2. AFFORDABLE ENERGY

The next step is to make energy in Ontario more affordable. The cost of energy in Ontario has gotten out of control under the Liberals. Our energy rates have already doubled, and are set to go up even higher. This hurts families and has forced our once-booming manufacturing sector to relocate. This has to stop in order to turn things around.

Everyone hates to pay high energy costs. We hate to pay over $ 1.35 a litre at the gas pumps, We hate to pay high hydro rates, and natural gas rates. Tim Hudak has said he can't control the high cost of energy, and he's still not said how he intends to curb the high cost of energy in Ontario. Our once booming manufacturing sector is not leaving Ontario because of our high energy costs. There are other factors like our high staffing costs, property taxes, transportation, cost of goods, and so on. Again I ask Tim Hudak what would a PC Government do to bring back all these manufacturing jobs? 

3. TRAIN MORE SKILLED WORKERS

Step three is to create more skilled workers to meet the demand of trade jobs in Ontario. Increasing our skilled workforce will make Ontario more competitive and help young people find good-paying jobs.

This point I can agree with Tim Hudak on. We need to create more skilled workers, we need to make sure that we have more students looking to go into the trades. But I say again where's the plan to do this?

4. INCREASE TRADE WITH OUR NEIGHBOURS

Ontario needs to strengthen trade with neighbouring provinces and states. We want to make sure the things Ontario workers make can reach as many customers as possible.

Since the end of the recession, trade with the United States has increased, but not to the point it was prior to the recession. Job loses was in the tens of millions south of the boarder. Unless you are willing to pay our workers like the workers are paid in India and China, we will never go back to the way it was prior to the recession. That's why Ontario needs to become a leader in the Hi-Tech sector, so our technology can be exported around the world. Education is the key to our future.

5. END THE BUREAUCRATIC RUNAROUND THAT INHIBITS JOB CREATION.

Red tape and government bureaucracy is crippling small businesses and making people think twice about starting or relocating their business here in Ontario. We want to put an end to the bureaucratic runaround that costs businesses more money and hurts job creation.

Again another area I can agree with Tim Hudak on. Having said that every party will tell you the same thing that they want to end the red tape. However which party has what it takes to actually do it?

Hudak has to still deal with the ghost of Mike Harris, much like Andrea Horwath has to deal with the ghost of Bob Rae, and Kathleen Wynne has to deal with the ghost of Dalton McGuinty. So this race will come down to who can you trust to change things in Ontario.