Finance Minister reports Ontario’s deficit to hit $15B

Ontario’s Finance Minister Vic Fedeli says the province will run a $15 billion deficit this fiscal year.

Fedeli provided the number in a speech to the Economic Club in Toronto – his first major speech since becoming finance minister.

The figure comes from an independent commission tasked with probing accounting practices under the Liberals.

The Wynne Liberals fought with Ontario’s Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk for two years over its accounting practices.

The Liberal government projected a $6.7 billion deficit for this year.

In April, Lysyk said the Liberals had understated the deficit by billions.

Fedeli accused the Liberals of “deception” and going to great extremes to deceive the public.

“We will return to a balanced budget on a timetable that is reasonable, modest and pragmatic,” said Fedeli.

The Progressive Conservative government had promised to get Ontario balanced in two years. It’s not clear if that is still the plan.

“The task ahead is not an easy one,” he told the Economic Club. “The hole is deep and will require everyone to make sacrifices without exception.”

At a press conference later, Fedeli said this would mean finding “efficiencies” but wouldn’t say if it meant job cuts.

The PCs have also commissioned a line-by-line audit of government spending, which is expected to be finished in the coming weeks.