Ontario Liberals facing an uphill battle to unseat the pandemic premier

Ontario’s next election is only two years away — is Doug Ford beatable?

Although the last few weeks have been rocky, most Ontarians appear pleased with our premier. Like the citizens of Whoville on Christmas morning, we celebrate how a pandemic has caused the heart of the man — who once joyfully cancelled a minimum wage hike — to grow three times in size. How does an opposition politician compete?

I think of my former colleague Steven Del Duca, who became leader of the Ontario Liberals in early March. Although extremely capable, COVID-19 stole his 15 minutes of fame.

How should he and the Liberals respond? Let me offer some practical advice to the party I once represented at Queen’s Park.

Start with the current situation — the statesmanlike treatment of the premier and the fact that nobody seems to remember the government’s grim prepandemic record — from autism to licence plates.

Hold the government to account, but don’t become sniping partisans, second-guessing every move. Before criticizing, ask yourself: “Would you have done anything differently?”

Remember, as the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions continues to encounter problems, the premier’s lustre will fade.

Liberals should also accept Ontario’s collective amnesia about the early Ford years — dredging up old battles will appear petty — be happy that voters won’t remember past Liberal mistakes.

Instead of worrying about today, look ahead two years. What will be the main issues as Ontarians head to the polls? Pandemic planning and long-term care are obvious candidates.

Although Liberals need to address these issues, they should not try to contrast themselves dramatically with the government in these areas — there are no easy solutions and the Liberal record is far from perfect.

Liberals should also avoid new programs like basic income — they are simply too complicated and expensive to try to sell to voters preoccupied with one major concern. And what will that concern be — “jobs.”

COVID-19 has seen Ontario go from virtually full employment to an economy that has lost thousands of jobs.

Here, Liberals have an edge: education and training is their thing and they have a solid track record, from full-day kindergarten to the Second Career Program for laid off workers.

As well as training people for jobs, the Liberals should also take a look at the jobs themselves.

One of the big take-aways from this crisis is the dire circumstances faced by precarious workers.

One of the cornerstones of any job program should be an assurance that those on the lowest rung of the job scale will be guaranteed the pay, benefits and protection that they deserve. Here again the Liberals have credibility. They increased the minimum wage, strengthened worker protections and legislated mandatory sick days — moves that seem quite prescient in the light of current events.

With all that is happening in the world, advice to focus on only one policy area may appear strange. Elections, however, are usually won by whichever party offers the most hope. And Ontarians’ desire for hope will revolve around one thing — jobs.

Liberals are in an unenviable position at the moment, but by focusing on the future they can position themselves to take on Ford.

Just remember, there’s never been a successful sequel to “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.”