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NEWS RELEASE
Communiqué
John Vanthof
MPP/Deputé
Timiskaming-Cochrane
New Liskeard Office/Bureau
247 Whitewood Ave., Box 398
Pinewoods Centre, Unit 5
New Liskeard, ON P0J 1P0
Phone: (705) 647-5995
Toll Free: 1-888-701-1105
Fax: (705) 647-1976
Email/Courriel:
jvanthof-co@ndp.on.ca
Kirkland Lake Office/Bureau
30 Second Street East
2nd Floor, East Wing
Kirkland Lake, ON P2N 3H7
Phone: (705) 567-4650
Toll Free: 1-800-461-2186
Fax: (705) 567-4208
Email/Courriel:
jvanthof.kl-co@ndp.on.ca
Sturgeon Falls Office/Bureau
193 King Street, 2nd Floor
Sturgeon Falls, ON P2B 1R8
Phone: (705) 753-0200
Fax: (705) 753-0800
Email/Courriel
jvanthof.sf-co@ndp.on.ca
Matheson, Iroquois Falls,
Cochrane Office/Bureau
Mobile: (705) 288-1788
Email/Courriel:
LiseB@ndp.on.ca
Working for you in
Timiskaming-Cochrane!
Travailler pour vous dans
Timiskaming-Cochrane!
Liberal Privatization of HydroONE Will Not Work
for Northern Ontario
April 20, 2015
Last Thursday, Premier Kathleen Wynne announced that the Liberal
Government plans to sell the Hydro ONE distribution system to help pay
for her Government’s transit construction plans. The announcement was
intentionally made outside of the Legislature during Question Period,
which is the period of time set aside for Opposition MPPs to hold the
Government to account on behalf of the people of Ontario. Rather than
take responsibility for their plan of action, Premier Wynne and her inner
cabinet simply decided not to show up to Question Period. In protest of the
Government’s disrespectful behavior, the NDP caucus loudly demanded
answers on HydroONE, to the point that all NDP members were ejected
from the House. We took this strong action to bring attention to the pitfalls
of the Premier’s misguided decision to sell HydroONE, and her disregard
for Ontarians.
High electricity rates are one of the biggest issues facing Northern Ontario
residents and businesses. Here in the North, the majority of our energy
comes from publically-owned Ontario Power Generation (OPG) hydroelectric dams, which generate sustainable, low-cost energy. However,
under the Harris and McGuinty Governments, Ontario made private power
generation contract arrangements for more expensive forms of energy
(e.g. solar farms, wind turbines, and natural gas plants). As the province
must honour these private business energy contracts first, the publicallyowned OPG is regularly directed to shut down their generators in times of
low hydro demand. By prioritizing expensive private energy providers over
cheaper public power generation sources like OPG, the price of generating
electricity across Ontario has skyrocketed. If the Liberal Government
succeeds in their misguided plan to privatize our distribution system as
well, costs will inevitably go up. The ability of businesses to grow and
create jobs will be directly impacted, as well as the ability of residents to
afford basic necessities after they’ve paid their hydro bill.
In terms of the North, selling a monopoly like Hydro ONE to the private
sector is always a danger to the public, especially in rural areas. Though
some people think private companies are supposed to cut costs by being
more efficient, the objective of private business is to maximize profit for
their shareholders. Undoubtedly, providing reliable hydro services to those
living in low-density areas will not be a profitable venture. There is major
concern that the sale of HydroONE will result in higher Hydro bills and
reduced service to people throughout Ontario.
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NEWS RELEASE
Communiqué
John Vanthof
MPP/Deputé
Timiskaming-Cochrane
New Liskeard Office/Bureau
247 Whitewood Ave., Box 398
Pinewoods Centre, Unit 5
New Liskeard, ON P0J 1P0
Phone: (705) 647-5995
Toll Free: 1-888-701-1105
Fax: (705) 647-1976
Email/Courriel:
jvanthof-co@ndp.on.ca
Kirkland Lake Office/Bureau
30 Second Street East
2nd Floor, Eastwing
Kirkland Lake, ON P2N 3H7
Phone: (705) 567-4650
Toll Free: 1-800-461-2186
Fax: (705) 567-4208
Email/Courriel:
jvanthof.kl-co@ndp.on.ca
Sturgeon Falls Office/Bureau
193 King Street, 2nd Floor
Sturgeon Falls, ON P2B 1R8
Phone: (705) 753-0200
Fax: (705) 753-0800
Email/Courriel
jvanthof.sf-co@ndp.on.ca
Over the past winter, hydro problems have been the number one issue in
our constituency offices. People have struggled with inaccurate HydroONE
billing due to faulty SmartMeters and a new billing program. Alongside the
Ontario Ombudsman and Auditor General’s reports on HydroONE issues,
the NDP have pushed the Government to implement an effective
complaint-resolution process at HydroONE. As a result, our constituency
office has been able to solve many of these inaccurate bills with the help of
the Ombudsman. Today though, the majority of concerns have shifted to
the high charges for Hydro. Many of our neighbours are at a tipping point,
where they cannot afford to properly heat their homes, keep the lights on,
and feed their families. If HydroONE is sold, the Ombudsman and Auditor
General will lose the authority to investigate and solve Hydro issues. Our
office will be unable to intervene at all; correcting problems will become
virtually impossible.
It is evident that the current Liberal Government does not realize the
gravity of the situation. It is even harder to convince a majority government
to re-think this fundamentally flawed plan. However, when Mike Harris
once tried to sell HydroONE to the highest bidders on Bay Street, the
people of Ontario stopped him. It is possible to stop Kathleen Wynne as
well, but it will not be easy. Ontarians across the North must speak up
together, and demand that the Government re-consider this plan. You can
start today by writing to Premier Wynne herself and the Ministry of Energy.
Check our website and Facebook page for their addresses. Together, we
will demand our right to public ownership of our power.
John Vanthof
MPP Timiskaming - Cochrane
Matheson, Iroquois Falls,
Cochrane Office/Bureau
Mobile: (705) 288-1788
Email/Courriel:
LiseB@ndp.on.ca
Working for you in
Timiskaming-Cochrane!
Travailler pour vous dans
Timiskaming-Cochrane!
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