The Niagara Falls Review

The Ford government wants Ontarians to weigh in on how they would like to see the province save $6 billion from the budget //

- ROB FERGUSON Toronto Star

Got an idea how Premier Doug Ford’s new government, which promised in the spring election campaign to cut spending by $6 billion a year without axing jobs, can provide public services better at lower cost?

An online “suggestion box” has been set up for three weeks so the public can make their views known, with civil servants being asked to join in and share their insider knowledge.

No long-term, blue-sky thinkers, please. And don’t dare beg for money to make anything work.

Suggestion­s must be “feasible, practical and affordable for us to implement in the short term,” the website cautions, noting “your idea must not ask for funding.”

The survey takes about 15 minutes to complete and asks participan­ts to rate the effectiven­ess and rank the priority they place on a wide variety of government services, from hospitals to schools, to child welfare, social assistance and more.

Choices range from very low priority to very high on the survey, which complement­s a lineby-line review of all government programs and services being conducted by an outside accounting firm.

There is space to list three big ideas on the website with room for 2,000 words of explanatio­n on each one on the site, which prominentl­y notes the government’s key priorities — “reducing the burden on taxpayers” tops these.

“It is important that Ontarians have a direct say in how government can improve the effectiven­ess and efficiency of provincial programs and services while avoiding job cuts,” said Treasury Board President Peter Bethlenfal­vy.

“We will continue listening to the people of Ontario about what matters most to them, and we will use what we hear to ensure vital public services are affordable and sustainabl­e, both now and in the years to come.”

The deadline for submission­s to the website is Sept. 21.

During the June 7 campaign, Ford described the $6 billion in spending cuts as “efficienci­es” at a level of four cents on every dollar the government spends.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath warned that Ontarians will feel a deeper pinch than that because Ford’s spending promises, such as income tax cuts, will also have to be paid for.

“People are pretty worried about what Doug Ford has in store, and so am I,” she told reporters in June, warning that important services and programs will be cut.

“The majority of Ontarians did not vote for cuts to health care or layoffs to more nurses and more teachers or the privatizat­ion of the things that matter most to all of us,” added Horwath, who is now leader of the Official Opposition.

MPPs are now on a break after the Legislatur­e sat for six weeks in July and August.

The fall session of the House begins on Sept. 24.

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