Wynne’s progressive plan makes rural folk shudder

Premier Kathleen Wynne is said to have developed a “bold” strategy for getting re-elected in next June’s provincial vote.

Essentially the new strategy involves overwhelming Ontario residents with “progressive” initiatives designed to appeal to traditional Liberals who are fed up with the endless debacles of the Wynne government, NDPers and others with a progressive bent.

Presumably the folks who would change allegiance or jump back on the Wynne train to nowhere reside mostly in the big cities and their suburbs.

It’s a certainty that things will be different in rural Ontario, which is not overrun with progressives at the best of times.

Rural Ontario did not support Wynne’s Liberals last election and she has done nothing to change any minds since taking office.

Also, rural folk are tired of the way this government plays smoke and mirrors with our money, trying to buy votes. The recently announced reductions in electricity rates are the latest examples.

Among the progressive ideas we might see popping up at Queen’s Park are a guaranteed annual income. Presumably, that would replace welfare and other support programs. Such an income, of course, would have to be high enough to cover the costs of heat and electricity.

Also expected is an increase in the minimum wage from the $11.60 that is to become effective in October, to $15 an hour.

Also on the horizon, according to Bob Hepburn of The Toronto Star, are sweeping changes to labour and employment laws. It’s anybody’s guess what these changes might entail, but it’s a cinch they won’t be pretty for some business owners.

Here’s the problem with such a plan. The Wynne government and the government of Dalton McGuinty before her, have never suffered from lack of a progressive agenda. The problem always has been poor implementation and a critical lack of management.

The Green Energy Act was a progressive idea. But instead of coming up with some creative ideas whereby Ontario residents could benefit, perhaps by establishing co-operatives to build and own wind and solar installations, the Liberals set it up so the people pay in perpetuity with offshore conglomerates making off with most of the profits.

Likewise, the new sex ed curriculum in schools was nothing if not progressive. But it was implemented in the most ham-fisted way possible.

A little delay in the start date to provide time for more conversations with parents — two-way conversations where government representatives actually listen — might have avoided a generation of hard feelings and alienated voters.

Establishing a new trails policy over private lands without consulting land owners was anything but a well-managed idea.

The best of intentions can become a nightmare when nobody understands implementation, managing expectations or caring about how changes will impact the people the government was elected to serve.

Now rural folks will fear that progressive initiatives might be enough to move city voters back to the Liberals.

The anti-Wynne pendulum seems to have swung too far for that to happen. However, if it begins to swing back, we can only hope it bumps Wynne out of the way on its journey.