Chamber of Commerce president grades provincial budget; local MPP highlights benefits for regionLOCAL

THUNDER BAY – The local Chamber of Commerce president gives the provincial budget a B-minus.

Ontario’s 2016 fiscal framework was unveiled Thursday afternoon at Queen’s Park by Finance Minister Charles Sousa. The $133.9 billion budget is forecasting a $5.7 billion deficit, which will lead to the provincial debt exceeding $300 billion.

Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce president Charla Robinson acknowledged the challenges the provincial Liberal government is facing.

“We know that it’s really hard to throw out a lot of great spending ideas when the bank is bare,” she said. “Based on all of the challenges they’re facing they’re certainly investing in some of the areas I think that are positive for the economy and will help the economy grow, which is what they need to do.”

Those areas include investment in education and workforce training, specifically increasing post-secondary education access, enhancing supports for apprentices and training providers and providing capital funding for the establishment of a new technology, education and collaboration hub at Confederation College.

“Labour force and skills development is a big issue and something we’re projecting going forward to become even more challenging,” she said.

Confederation College president Jim Madder said the capital funding will allow the school to greatly enhance their manufacturing program.

That program has proven to be successful in helping the college attract international students.

“It allows us to have a lot more space so we can have more students and also increase the number of projects we’re doing with industry to increase the innovation we’re doing,” Madder said.

“A good number of our students who come for manufacturing are from other countries so this will allow us to have greater facilities, more equipment we can house and greater opportunities for those students to learn skills.”

The recently announced Centre for Workforce Innovation hub in Thunder Bay as well as the establishment of a local employment and planning council were also presented in the budget.

Northern Development and Mines Minister Michael Gravelle said the emphasis on employment training is just one example of the budget benefitting Northwestern Ontario.

The Thunder Bay-Superior North MPP specifically identified the $550 million Northern Highways Program, which among other projects will further the four-laning of the Trans-Canada Highway between Thunder Bay and Nipigon, $120 million Northern Industrial Energy Rate program and the recommitment of $1 billion for a Ring of Fire transportation corridor as significant pieces.

“There are a number of other projects and there are some major highway projects, not certainly just between Thunder Bay and Nipigon although I am pleased to see those new projects in the budget,” Gravelle said.

While Robinson was encouraged by many components of the budget, she also has some concerns such as the costs of regional transportation.

She was disappointed there was no Northwest exemption for the provincial Aviation Fuel Tax for the third straight year and she expects the new cap and trade system that could increase the price of gasoline by 4.3 cents per litre to have more of an impact in the region than other parts of the province.

“We already know Northwestern Ontario has higher transportation costs, a lot of that because of the higher price of gasoline up here but also because we’re further away from everything than they are in Toronto,” Robinson said.

“Anytime there’s a tax on gasoline or any kind of transportation issue that will have a bigger impact here than it would in the Greater Toronto Area because of the distance factor so that’s a concern.”

Gravelle said there will be consideration to lessening the impact.

“There will be programs that will be put in place and there are programs that will be put in place that will be helping mitigate those costs,” he said.