Budget talks

The provincial government’s 2011-2012 budget was more about recommitment for Northern Ontario than it was about making new announcements.

The budget, with a projected $113.8 billion in spending, was announced Tuesday afternoon. Minister of Northern Development, Mining and Forestry Michael Gravelle said the budget shows the province’s continued commitment to projects, such as the Ring of Fire and four-laning from Thunder Bay to Nipigon.

"It was by no means a slam dunk. Minister Duncan has some real challenges in terms of dealing with the fiscal reality," Gravelle said.

But the minister said he is excited to see another $10 million in the budget for the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation, which brings the total spending for NOHFC up to $100 million per year.

MPP Bill Mauro (Lib., Thunder Bay-Atikokan) said he shared the minister’s excitement.

"This is a significant piece for Northern Ontario because you’ve seen the tremendous announcements that come out of that fund," Mauro said.

Opposition parties were quick to criticize the Liberals for a lack of Northern Ontario specific announcements in the budget, but Mauro said no region was specifically mentioned in Tuesday’s budget.

"That’s not what this budget spoke to," he said. "It spoke to higher level messaging … we weren’t left out."

Gravelle said Thunder Bay will see benefits from a commitment to create 60,000 new spaces for post-secondary schools by 2016, although Mauro admits that it’s not clear how many new seats will open up at Lakehead University and Confederation College.

"It’s definitely too soon but clearly if the capacity is required, Michael (Gravelle) and I will ensure that we receive part of that 60,000," Mauro said.

The budget didn’t feature any new tax increases or decreases, although a $1.5 billion savings plan over the next three years will be put in place in an effort to tackle the now $16.3 billion deficit, which is down $400 million from the previous year.

Part of that plan is a complete review of services in Ontario and cutting 1,500 civil service jobs. Gravelle said while it’s no question government service jobs play a vital role in Northwestern Ontario, a budget is about balancing.

"The (cuts) will be done in a balanced way … done fairly," Gravelle said.

Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce board chair Justin Frape said he didn’t see anything unexpected in the budget and wasn’t as aggressive as he would’ve liked overall.

Although Frape said there are some good points, targets set for deficit reduction appear underwhelming.