Progressive Conservative Party leader Doug Ford told a partisan crowd at a Barrie rally Friday night that he will cut taxes, reform education and “turn the health-care system around.”
At a campaign stop packed with close to 400 people at the Holly Community Centre, Ford was joined on stage by his “all-star” local candidates, including Andrea Khanjin (Barrie-Innisfil), Doug Downey (Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte), Jim Wilson (Simcoe-Grey) and Caroline Mulroney (York-Simcoe).
Also on hand were York-Simcoe MP Peter Van Loan (“One of the smartest guys I know; he’s a champion,” Ford said), as well as Barrie-Innisfil MP John Brassard.
Ford said the province is ripe for change.
“A new day will dawn in Ontario, the likes of which this province has never seen,” Ford said. “We’re going to make this (province) the engine of Canada again.”
Ford said one of the first things he’d do as premier, if elected, is have a third-party conduct a line-by-line audit to look into how the Liberals have governed Ontario for the last several years.
“It’s the most politically corrupt political party I’ve seen in my life, federal, provincial or municipal,” he said.
Ford touched on a wide range of topics during his speech, from health-care to education and job creation to hydro, all of which were addressed as BarrieToday polled those in attendance about what they wanted to hear from the PC Party leader.
When approached by BarrieToday for comment about what brought him out to the rally, Barrie resident Greg Bowen pulled out a picture of himself with Ford’s late brother and former Toronto mayor, Rob Ford, taken four years ago in the mayor’s office.
Bowen said he likes what the Fords -- particularly Doug during his current campaign to become premier of the province -- stand for.
“He’s for the people, for the underdog,” Bowen said. “It’s very simple. The others (party leaders) wouldn’t give you the time of day or take time to talk to people who they think aren’t important.
“Little do they know, that is going to be their downfall.”
Bowen, who was wearing a ‘Make Canada Great Again’ hat, said his main concerns heading into the election are soaring hydro bills and gas prices.
Aside from health-care, a topic which Ford said he has heard plenty about during the early days of the campaign, the PC leader said hydro rates are also among the most talked about.
“If it’s a choice between eating and heating, that’s not going to happen in Ontario,” he said.
Bowen said the province needs new leadership.
“We need a change,” he said. “The one who is in there (Kathleen Wynne) has got to go. I hope the door doesn’t hit her on the way out.”
Bowen says Wynne’s Liberal government has made too many promises that it continues to break, which has contributed to the provincial debt.
“It’s worse than some places in Africa and that’s a bad, bad sign,” Bowen said.
Ford said a series of tax cuts would help stimulate the economy.
“We believe we’re going to put money back in your pockets. In fact, we’re going to do it,” he said. “We’re working for the people. People are tired of tax, tax, tax and spend, spend, spend. You have Wynne in one pocket and (Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau in the other.”
Barrie resident Kyle Tilley, a local Catholic school teacher, was decked out head-to-toe in blue, including a Winnipeg Jets hockey jersey and a Toronto Blue Jays baseball cap.
“Like a lot of Ontarians, I’m looking to see what Doug Ford has to offer,” said Tilley, adding he’s still undecided about who he’ll vote for on Election Day, June 7. “I’m leaning toward the PC Party, because I don’t like how the Liberals are dealing with the deficit.
“The Liberals have wrecked education,” Tilley said, adding he’s also keen to hear what the PCs plan to do about continuing the Catholic school board model and whether they plan to continue funding the faith-based education system. “I’m really hoping that they will.”
Ford received several big cheers from the crowd, Friday, but perhaps one of the biggest came when he said his party would scrap the sexual-education curriculum.
“The days of indoctrinating our children are done,” he said to a chorus of applause.
On the topic of education, Ford said more can be done when it comes to teaching our children.
“The Wynne government is failing our kids and our teachers,” he said. “I love the teachers; you guys are champions.”
Barrie resident Dr. Doug Crawford, who has worked as an anesthesiologist for more than three decades, said the way health-care is funded has to change.
“I’m here because we need a change in government,” Crawford said. “I work in health-care and I’m tired of all this one-off money. We need operating budgets, because we’re seeing an increase in the population and an increase in the number of elderly.
“I do not see that with the Wynne government, and they don’t even talk about long-term care,” Crawford said. “Health-care is always stretched, no matter what. We need a realistic plan. There are solutions, so we need to figure out what we’re going to do.”
Crawford said he thinks people are thirsty for a new direction.
“The tone from the people is they want a change in government,” Crawford said. “This goes back to the (Dalton) McGuinty government and they’ve wasted a lot of money on projects that are not going anywhere.”
On the issue of health-care, Ford said his party would reduce hospital wait times by adding 15,000 new beds in the first five years, followed by an additional 15,000 in the following half-decade. He said there would also be more money for mental-health, addiction and housing support.
“My friends, we will turn the health-care system around,” Ford said.
Following Ford’s address, there was a long line of supporters at the stage ready to have their picture taken with the PC Party leader.
