During Question Period today, Rob Leone, MPP for Cambridge shed light on robocalls that are being sent out by the Liberal Government regarding a possible election and the fate of the Cambridge Memorial Hospital expansion project.

 “The Ontario Liberals demonstrated to Cambridge that they are the party that wants an election campaign. Rather than promoting their budget using facts, the Liberals rattled their election sabre and instead resorted to distractions, scare tactics and misleading robocalls,” said Leone.

 “The facts are these: I am voting against the budget but I am not voting in favour of an election. I am voting against the budget because there is no jobs plan in this document”, said Leone. “It does nothing to steer us away from a looming $30 billion deficit. Spending goes up, not down, and the deficit is now higher than those of all other provinces combined.”

“Hospitals are the largest and most important provincial institution in most communities. To hold the Cambridge Memorial Hospital expansion hostage from our community in an effort to play political games, further demonstrates that Dalton McGuinty does not grasp the scale of problems Ontario faces,” added Leone. “Rather than focusing on the jobs and economic crisis, he focuses his time on inaccurate and misleading robocalls.”

Since day one, Leone has been an advocate for Cambridge Memorial Hospital. Leone introduced a Private Member’s resolution regarding Cambridge Memorial Hospital and the Legislature successfully passed the resolution. In the resolution, Leone asked the Liberal Government to table a detailed plan for Cambridge Memorial Hospital and other hospital expansion projects across Ontario, but the Liberals were the only party to vote against the resolution.

“On September 25th, 2011, the local Liberal campaign team issued a press release saying that the CMH expansion was ‘part of the recently passed budget – meaning the money is already committed from the province for CMH.’ To suggest that the vote for funding the Cambridge Memorial Hospital expansion is in this year’s budget means that the Liberals were either lying then or are lying now.” said Leone.

“The time for political games is over, I have always said and will continue to say that hospital funding should be based on need, not politics. I vow to all Cambridge and North Dumfries residents that I will continue to stand up against the Liberals fear tactics and protect our hospital from political games,” concluded Leone.

“This week, phone calls are being made to Cambridge and North Dumfries residents providing them with false information. The phone calls claimed that I was voting against the budget, that I was voting against Cambridge Memorial  Hospital’s expansion and that I wanted an election. Firstly, I have chosen to vote against the budget because it does not address the ongoing jobs and economic crisis. Serious action needs to be taken to correct this sinking ship and this budget failed to address it. It’s one thing for the Liberals to promote their budget using facts. But they don’t have any, so they resort to distractions, scare tactics and misleading robocalls instead. The facts are these: There is no jobs plan in this budget. It does nothing to steer us away from a looming $30 billion deficit. Spending goes up, not down. The deficit is now higher than those of all other provinces combined.

Secondly, my vote against the budget does not mean that I want an election. On the contrary, I know that constituents in Cambridge and North Dumfries feel that an election is a waste of money and not necessary. I am simply voting against a very weak Budget that does nothing to help the long-term sustainability of our economy. We tried to avoid an election before the budget. However, over the past 6 months, my colleagues and I have put forth numerous ideas that we wanted in the budget only to have the McGuinty Government scoff at these ideas and they continue to ignore them today.

Lastly, in regards to the hospital funding, since day one, I have been an advocate for Cambridge Memorial Hospital. When I introduced the first Private Member’s ballot, the House successfully passed my resolution on the hospital expansion projects. In my resolution, I asked the Liberal Government to table a detailed plan for Cambridge Memorial Hospital and all other hospital expansions that they promised across Ontario, but they were the only party to vote against the resolution and they continue to refuse to table the documents. It is apparent that the reason that they didn’t table a plan is because they didn’t want to be held accountable to their plans. Instead, they hoped that in the near future they could dangle the fate of Cambridge Memorial Hospital in front of Cambridge’s eyes once again. But the facts are that on July 28^th, 2011, Health Minister Deb Matthews stated that the funding was “baked” into last year’s Budget and it was reconfirmed on September 25th, 2011, when the local Liberal Campaign team issued a press release saying that the CMH expansion was “part of the recently passed budget – meaning the money is already committed from the province for CMH.” To suggest that the vote for funding the Cambridge Memorial Hospital expansion is in this year’s budget means that the Liberals were either lying then or are lying now.

The time for political games is over! I have always said and will continue to say that hospital funding should be based on need, not politics. The Liberals have already said that the money is committed for Cambridge Memorial Hospital. Why would they make this phone call and cast doubt by saying that it is not safe or secure?

For a phone call like this to go out to Cambridge residents is very upsetting and troubling. When an announcement was made for CMH last Thursday, I thought we had gotten out of the political games around Cambridge Memorial Hospital, but I guess that we haven’t. I vow to all Cambridge and North Dumfries residents that I will continue to stand up against the Liberals fear tactics and protect our hospital from political games.” – Rob Leone, MPP for Cambridge and North Dumfries.

With new StatsCan numbers showing Ontario’s unemployment rate higher than the national average for the 63rd consecutive month – and no job creation plan in the budget, Cambridge MPP Rob Leone met with community and business leaders to seek their ideas to kick-start job creation.

 “The lack of jobs plan, in the McGuinty Liberal budget, has led me to engage local entrepreneurs, job creators and community leaders for their ideas to help build upon Tim Hudak’s plan for private sector job growth.”

Despite the urgent need for job creation, the 2012 Ontario Budget forecasts that only 59,000 net new jobs will be created across the province this year. This is half the number of new jobs that the 2011 budget predicted, added Leone.

The Ontario PC plan to create a dynamic economy that creates jobs includes:

• Balance the budget to give businesses confidence that the province can afford the things they need to expand, invest and create jobs – like lower taxes and good infrastructure,
• Lower businesses taxes to create a more competitive business environment,
• Permanently reduce Ontario’s 386,251 pieces of regulation by at least a third,
• Treat affordable energy as a cornerstone of economic growth; and,
• Create more skilled trades jobs by modernizing the apprenticeship system

“I have said before, and I continue to say that Dalton McGuinty’s budget was a surprisingly weak response to a looming $30-billion deficit,” Leone said. “Failing to tackle deficits and debt puts a further damper on job creation because it erodes business confidence inOntarioas a good place to invest, expand and create jobs.”

And given that the Liberals actively deter job creation through higher business taxes, which will take $1.5-billion out of the economy just when it’s most needed, “we must join with business leaders in charting a new course, toward a more dynamic economy that again creates good jobs,” Leone added.

“The Liberal budget took virtually no action on that front – especially with the total absence of a legislated public sector wage freeze. An Ontario PC government will,” Leone concluded.

“I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Cambridge native Gord Renwick, who was selected as a recipient of the Order of Hockey in Canada. The Order of Hockey in Canada recognizes individuals that have played prominent roles in developing and growing the game in Canada. Mr. Renwick is being inducted this year alongside Jean Beliveau, Cassie Campbell-Pascall, Gordie Howe, and Wayne Gretzky   

Mr. Renwick not only was one of the original builders of the Galt Hornets senior hockey organization, but was also President of the Hornets, during which time the Hornets won two Allan Cups. Mr. Renwick was also instrumental in establishing the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA), now Hockey Canada, in the International Ice Hockey Federation. He also served as president of the CAHA, and as a board member and vice-president of the IIHF.

This honour is well deserved and further illustrates the deep roots that the game of hockey has in our communities of Cambridge and North Dumfries.”

“I had the pleasure of rising in the Legislature today in support of organ donors. MPP Helena Jaczek introduced a motion calling on the Government to appoint an advisory committee made up of affected stakeholders to investigate all possible options for encouraging and improving organ and tissue donation in Ontario. In addition, MPP Rob Milligan introduced a Private Member’s Bill on the topic.

There is a great need for organ donors across the province. In 2011, 1557 Ontarians were on the waiting list to receive an organ transplant. Organ donation is very important. Far too many people sit waiting by their phone to be told that they are getting an organ.

I would like to thank existing organ donors across Ontario and given the debate that has taken place in the Legislature today, I would like to take this opportunity to encourage all residents of Ontario to sign their donor card and make their wishes known to their family. Registering to be a donor can be done at www.beadonor.ca or by filling out a Gift of Life Consent Form and submitting it to any Service Ontario location.” – Rob Leone, MPP for Cambridge and North Dumfries.

It should be possible for residents in all parts of the riding to communicate with each other by telephone without incurring existing long-distance charges, Rob Leone, MPP for Cambridge said today.

In a letter to Cambridge Mayor Doug Craig and North Dumfries Mayor Rob Deutschmann, Leone asks Cambridge Municipal Council and North Dumfries Municipal Council to review the local calling area.

“It is unreasonable to have residents in North Dumfries being charged long-distance telephone rates to call family and friends in Preston (19.8 kms away) or Hespeler (24.8 kms). The same is true for Preston and Hespeler residents calling into the Township.”

Currently, residents in Roseville and Ayr can call Kitchener (20.7 kms) without any long-distance charges, Leone added.

“I hope that Cambridge and North Dumfries Municipal Councils will take the opportunity to review the existing calling area with Bell and include North Dumfries into our local calling area.”

Longpersmipacon .

With every passing day on the road to a gaping $30 billion deficit, it’s becoming clearer to Ontarians that Dalton McGuinty is simply stalling for time – with no ideas for digging our province out of a jobs, spending and debt crisis of his own making, Rob Leone, MPP for Cambridge said today.

“The Premier has ignored repeated warnings that hiding from tough decisions, and blaming others for his own mistakes, will just prolong the pain of the difficult choices we all need to make,” Leone said.

“We have seen him pull billions of dollars in recommendations for savings from the Drummond report with nothing to take their place to reach a balanced budget. domain server . He has thrown sandbags around pet projects with no way to pay for them.”

And the Liberals continue with an approach to governing that ignores the big picture in favour of one-off spending binges, running from scandal and treating economic basics like affordable energy as a plaything for social engineers, Leone added.

“I have been touring businesses in Cambridge and North Dumfries and I recognize that we have some phenomenal companies in our community that are facing hardships because of the McGuinty Government’s inaction on the economy.”

“Simply put, it’s plain that Dalton McGuinty has no idea what to do. So we urge him to adopt our ideas to simultaneously reduce the size and cost of government and power up private sector job creation,” said Leone.

Leone detailed the Tim Hudak PC plan to deal with both sides of Ontario’s economic ledger:

Reducing the size and cost of government:

• An immediate, mandatory public sector wage freeze
• Reforming a public sector arbitration system that awards outsized settlements regardless of taxpayers’ ability to pay
• Making Ministers personally, financially responsible for hitting fiscal targets
• Enabling competition in the delivery of government services for efficiency and innovation, and
• A top-to-bottom review of all government functions to reinvest savings in health and education

Powering up private sector job creation:

• Lower tax rates on job-creating businesses
• Flexible, responsive regulation and an end to red tape
• Apprenticeship reform to create 200,000 skilled trades jobs, and
• A plan to end unsustainable solar and wind subsidies and make electricity more affordable

“Since last fall we have pushed relentlessly for these pro-growth ideas,” Leone said. Perhaps on reflection this March Break, Dalton McGuinty will realize we were right all along.”

Nonlandvenolec .