Wynne calls Waterloo ‘economy of the future’
WATERLOO — Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne talked trade, the new economy and education while campaigning for re-election at the University of Waterloo Friday.
By her side: former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin, who praised Wynne and cited his interest in education and the economy.
Wynne is seeking re-election June 7. She touted her party’s pledge to graduate 10,000 more science and technology students per year, promoted taxpayer-paid tuition for thousands of students, and spoke about promoting a new economy.
She said her government helped build the technology corridor between Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto into “a magnet for talent, for innovation, for investment, for entrepreneurship.”
“The economy of tomorrow is being built here at Waterloo,” she said.
Liberal candidates declined to linger on the old economy, rejecting a question about hardships caused by the loss of almost 12,000 local factory jobs since Liberal governments took office in 2003.
“Our manufacturing sector here in Waterloo Region is booming,” Kitchener Centre Liberal candidate Daiene Vernile said, fending off a question about factory trauma.
Vernile acknowledged: “We had the stuffing kicked out of us back between 2000 and 2010 with the loss of manufacturing jobs.”
Wynne and Martin warned that the tariff war that has erupted between Canada and the United States would be felt most strongly in Ontario if it turns into a trade war.
“This is where the battle in terms of steel is obviously taking place,” said Martin, prime minister from 2003 to 2006. “It is critical that we get this right,” Wynne said.
While campaigning at UW, Wynne took student questions on
issues such as political civility, student aid, job training for students, support for mental health, daycare, student housing, math skills and creditsharing among colleges and universities.
Wynne said she’d like to see more work placements for high school students, to connect jobs and learning.
“I think that we have to start before university,” she said.
She said her government is spending more to ensure that university students with poor mental health can access off-campus support.
“Sometimes what happens is there’s a disconnect,” she said. “Young people can fall through the cracks.”