Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario holds policy conference

Labour and community leaders gathered at a Niagara Falls hotel to criticize many of the Ontario government’s policies on Friday.

JP Hornick, the president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, said “Doug Ford and his conservative party say they’re getting it done for workers, they’re getting it done for Ontarians, we call bull****.”

This was the tone in the falls Friday morning, as labour leaders outlined what they say are the harmful impacts of a wide range of Ford government policies.

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“Corruption, closures and a cost of living crisis,” said Laura Walton the Ontario Federation of Labour president, pointing to the Greenbelt scandal and the controversial deal to move some Service Ontario kiosks into Staples and Walmart.

“Ford says one thing to the public, but does the opposite in private,” Walton said.

The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) says transit is underfunded.

John di Nino the president of ATU Canada said, “with reduced service, increased fares, lack of accessibility, it’s troubling and disheartening to say the least.”

Hamilton high school teacher Allison Cillis said education is being undermined, “were seeing overflowing classrooms…were seeing decreased access to course options…and a lack of specialized professional supports for our most vulnerable and special needs students.”

The chair of the “Save Fort Erie Hospital SOS” organization says people in Fort Erie are suffering due to cutbacks and closures at Douglas Memorial Hospital.

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Heather Kelley from Save Fort Erie Hospital SOS, said, “healthcare is not about dollars and cents, it’s about peoples health and their welfare and whether they live or die.”

In addition to today’s media conference, labour leaders will be holding a rally, Feb. 3 at noon, in front of the Niagara Falls Convention Centre.

The same place where the PC Police Conference was held on Friday and is scheduled to run on Saturday as well.

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CHCH News asked the Ford government about the lengthy list of criticisms, and was sent this response from the Ontario PC Party Policy Co-Chair Sam Oosterhoff – who is also the MPP for Niagara West:

“Our Ontario PC team is working for workers, having added over 700,000 jobs since 2018, and raising the minimum wage to $16.55/ hour…we cannot go back to the Liberal-NDP policies that put workers out of jobs and drove industry out of our province, including here in Niagara.”

Saturday’s rally is expected to draw several hundred people.