On the afternoon of Friday, August 17, Ontario New Democratic Party Leader Andrea Horwath and Essex MPP Taras Natyshak released a joint statement pointing out that in 2004 the Ontario Liberal Party cited the Ontario horse-racing industry as supporting 60,000 jobs, but, strangely, is now stating that the industry only supports '5,800' jobs.
The release quotes Horwath and Natayshak as saying, "The thousands of hard working Ontarians who make up our horseracing industry deserve better. We are committed to fighting for an honest solution that is fair to the industry, and fair to all Ontarians.”
NDP: Ontario horseracing industry deserves a fair deal
QUEEN’S PARK – NDP Leader Andrea Horwath and Essex MPP Taras Natyshak on the recently released report on the financial impact of cancelling revenue sharing programs with Ontario racetracks:
“The long-term repercussions of the short-sighted Liberal decision to withdraw OLG Slots from Ontario racetracks are already being felt. The economic impact report that has recently been released is one more damning piece of the puzzle.
"It’s clear now that this Liberal government chose not only to ignore the consequences of their decision, but chose to draft a report that distorts the economic impact in an attempt to justify their actions.
"In their own 2004 budget, the McGuinty Liberals boasted that the highly successful revenue sharing program supported 60,000 jobs across Ontario. Yet their recent report says only 5,800 jobs will be affected. The math doesn’t add up.
"With the revenue sharing program cancelled, racetracks across the province are facing near certain closure. That means thousands of Ontarians will be out of a job and it appears that the transition funding that will eventually be offered will not be nearly enough to compensate for the real losses Ontario faces.
"The thousands of hard working Ontarians who make up our horseracing industry deserve better. We are committed to fighting for an honest solution that is fair to the industry, and fair to all Ontarians.”
Instead of taking bows now
Instead of taking bows now for something they should have done months ago they should be calling for an investigation by the Integrity Commissioner for conflict of interest by the Finance Minister's office and the OLG. I have asked Senator Runciman to lodge a complaint with the Integrity Commissioner based upon the OLG's role in determining the ownership and location ot these Casinos; the Chairman of the OLG is also the Chairman of the largest Real Estate outfit in Canada and therein lies the conflict of interest charge.
If you are so committed to a
If you are so committed to a fair solution why did you and your party abstain from voting? You have never had anything to lose. Your party is always third and always will be third because you are promised in the back room you will be taken to the cleaners, I mean taken care of.
You had the chance to topple a government that has not only damaged horse racing but doctors, teachers and other unions and the municipalities that benefit from this program.
With you abstaining you have paved the way for higher taxes,shody health care and education from the money that will be lost from this partnership.
If you had any savvy at all you would have realized that dollars lost from this partnership would cause such a ripple effect and would have brought down the current government, it may have even made you finish first in the election.
You made yourself look like an a$% and the only way to make it better is to help the other party bring down the dictatorship we now have.
Speaking out after the fact is garbage, as stated you had all the facts, now you have more. What will you do with them this time?
Greg Parke
Summer will end soon and
Summer will end soon and hopefully the opposition can start putting some heat on the liberals and the OLG as to why they have not followed the Drummond report recommendations on closing one casino in Niagara Falls and the head office in Sault-St-Marie.
If we are in such dire need for money then WHY are the liberals and OLG putting this off ?
There is a very good article
There is a very good article in the Toronto Sun today (Saturday) which gives the correct numbers,etc. It is a full page article everyone should read.
Horwath and Natyshak can
Horwath and Natyshak can shove it up their platforms.
These people are not the friends we need. Certainly we don't want either of the by-elections going to the NDP so they can waste a vote in Parliament.
Natyshak especially sickens me. He has made several Shakespearean speeches about supporting horse racing and then sits on his hands instead of supporting us when it counted. He is a puppet and McGuinty, not Horwath makes him dance.
Please, don't help us, especially when you get the numbers wrong.
Georg Leber-ICR Racing
As an individual I don*t care
As an individual I don*t care to keep being redundant with my comments but the actions of all our politicians make this impossible if we care about jobs. Ms. Horwath and her bafflegabbing caucus are starting to show the honeymoon with the liberals is over and now they*re on our side again? People in other countries are being slaughtered to have the rights we used to enjoy! For any elected official to refuse to vote on an important undemocratic budget is something I will never forgive. Stand up for the victims i.e. horseracing employers and employees and maybe never could be changed!
Where was her brain when she
Where was her brain when she sided with the Liberals to pass the budget in the first place? Hope voters will remember that. She is just flip-flopping in the wind, whatever way the tides goes. The only party against cutting the Slot At Racetracks was the Conservatives. That is who we should stand behind. Horvath could have gone against the Liberals, we would have had an election and the Fiberals would have been out. Who knows Andrea, it was up to you, maybe you could have been elected or garnered a greater number of votes to have been official opposition. You blew it. But any help at this point is ok.
Just more of the same
Just more of the same political grandstanding by her and her party.They had the chance to save racing and Ontario and what did she do.........NOTHING! She cannot be trusted or believed!!
Maybe she shouldhav done
Maybe she shouldhav done something about i when she had the chance to. Now its almost to late.
I am one of Andreas
I am one of Andreas constituents, and in March and April, she refused to return my calls, after I had explained to her secretary why I was calling and went through the numbers, and went as far to block me from FB and twitter. Shhe would have/ could have had all this information months ago had she have taken the time to listen. Sorry Tony I dont see her standing up...UNLESS the NDP take at least one of the 2 by elections.. And I dont see that happening either.
Funny Ms. Horwath claims to
Funny Ms. Horwath claims to be now seeing the error of the Liberal's decision. However she neglects to apologize for supporting the budget that effectively cancelled the SAR program, and also neglects to mention how proud she was for obtaining the $50 million in "transitional" funding for the industry. I was banned from her facebook page for repeatedly pointing out the error of her thinking at the time. Now she chooses to jump on the bandwagon in support of the industry with a by election imminent. I suppose it's better late than never, but she has a long way to go before I would ever trust anything she says again.
Wouldn't it be great if we
Wouldn't it be great if we could get the teachers and doctors to support SAR, after all they are the biggest beneficiarys of SAR and on whose behalf the program is ending. They have no idea of what is happening only the lies being told by the liberals.Any teachers and doctors reading this,what do you think ? Some how lets get our info to them.They are being assaulted by the liberals also.
In reply to Wouldn't it be great if we by jkchill
Join me at queens park (
Join me at queens park ( maybe smother and wife too) you guys are all politicians ? Monday rally at the McGinty house Ten am 27 August 2012 .. This is your last chance, don't bother to Qualify at Mohawk or Grand River Monday ..Round fifteen and you need a knockout punch! Divided your out united you win I'm in your corner....Tom groom 1392 SC...33 liberals in the GTA ,that's why Dalton wants to pass the stop the teachers automatic pay raise! Before 1st September ....good idea but the Educaters are just looking after them selves, Mrs m excepted.
I may be old fashioned, and
I may be old fashioned, and out of date in age, but hundreds of years ago, my mother told me to always tell the truth. One lie leads to others to cover the first one up.
That is why the "BIG BOY", as I call him , up above the clouds, will take care of the horse people while punishing the rogues in ways not even shown to us yet.
When you think of all the false words used and would-be backroom deals (trying to be fanned into a roaring fire ) and then the fire goes out to embers.
The roaring fire will be used later where needed. I would be very paranoid if I was one of the Fiberals huddled in a dark corner with OLG staff and counting the money that will never sift down to Duncan and clan.
At the end of it all, Dad the Preemie will be pushed out of office due to ORANGE, eHealth, and the large movement of the machinery out in western Toronto.
We voters are not prepared to see millions missing from Government programs. Keep at it , OPP!!!!
@ Rob MacKay right on! The
@ Rob MacKay
right on! The NDP had the chance to defeat the budget and the discussion would have ended right there with an election. The great defenders of the little guy proved to be just another bunch of politicians on the make.
Yesterday a Liberal MPP
Yesterday a Liberal MPP jumping on our band wagon and today Ms. Horwath. Are they all starting to get a little nervous about the next election and to whom our votes will go? What the heck, we are finally getting their attention and some media coverage with a little bit of support thrown in for good measure. That can't be all bad.
The comments from the NDP are
The comments from the NDP are appreciated, however, I would suggest that the voters who placed their faith in the NDP during the last election did so with the understanding that the NDP would cast a vote, 'yes' or 'no', on key issues raised in Parliament. In my view, there is no acceptable reason to abstain. It's either 'yes' or 'no'. Perhaps the Party faithful will convince the NDP to back the PC's in the 2 byelections and to fully support the passage of Bill 76.
Her train has already come
Her train has already come and gone....
I don't trust anything she does or says...
she's lead us down this track before..
she simply wants the press
There is another component of
There is another component of damaged Ontario citizens-- the Tourism Industry.
A year ago a motel I frequent in Hanover told me she rents about 125 - 150 rooms per summer for guests who are there primarily for racing. That is just ONE small motel. One could guess that the total would easily be 3500 room /nights, when you count the Queen's Plate, N.A. Cup etc, etc. for Ontario hotels, plus meals,
rental cars and the like.
Should she not have to tell
Should she not have to tell us which side of her mouth she is talking out of this time??
People don't be fooled again
People don't be fooled again she could have saved us by forcing an election. She must have another motive here again, she is never getting my respect or my vote.
Sorry Charlie
Excuse me, but did she not
Excuse me, but did she not vote with the liberals to pass the budget?? So now she thinks she is going to get support by sounding outraged on behalf of the racing indusrty? I see. Good luck with that.
It's about time. We all knew
It's about time. We all knew this 3 months ago. I guess it takes an election for people to speak up & do the right thing.BUT thanks anyway, maybe it is not to late.
I am looking forward to
I am looking forward to seeing in writing the honest solution Mz. Horwath is referring to. Looks like she has decided to come to work. Seems more members of the Ontario Provincial Parliament are decideing they would like to see just what exactly prompted the Liberals to take the initiative to cancel the Slots at the Racetrack program. Cancelling programs which generate so many jobs and put so much revenue into the coffers of the provincial government needs an accurate explanation. Bruce T. Winning
While her help is welcome, Ms
While her help is welcome, Ms Horvath doesn't have it quite right. The 5800 is non-racing personnel working for the tracks. Since they have no clue how many people work in racing itself the authors then chose 16000 (commission licenses) for the racing side.This may or may not be the right number. The fraud is that they have totally ignored anyone who works at a breeding farm, training centre,or a layup and boarding facility who does not have a commission license. It also excludes any non- commission vet or farrier who services these aspects of the industry. This is also why they challenge the 261 million in revenues- if these people don't exist, they can't pay taxes. The distortion is 38000 workers, not 54000. It's still a whopping big lie.
But according to the Liberals
But according to the Liberals - horse people don't count because most are self employed.
IT'S ABOUT TIME.!.!.!.But
IT'S ABOUT TIME.!.!.!.But where has she been for the last 3 or 4 months....
hiding in the closet?????
Too little too late Andrea.
Too little too late Andrea. You had all the info months ago and chose to "ABSTAIN" when you had the opportunity to oust the elitist Liberals on a flawed budget containing flawed decisions to curry political favours for the NDP with the incumbents. A lie of omission is still a lie...
In reply to Too little too late Andrea. by Rob MacKay
You are bang on Rob! Thanks
You are bang on Rob! Thanks for telling it like it is. I agree 100%!
I certainly hope no-one is foolish enough to believe her this time, when in fact she had the power in her hands to stop the devastation of Ontario Horse Racing, and instead chose to protect her own job in her closed door negotiations with McGuinty and Duncan, not once but twice.
Fool us once Andrea, Shame on you...... Fool us twice Andrea.... Shame on Us!!
Does this mean she and her
Does this mean she and her party will actually stand up and vote or will she just abstain again.......I think she says what she needs to say on any given day
Stand Up and be counted