Ontario's new Progressive Conservative government played up key campaign promises Thursday in its first throne speech, which also included more recent policy pledges but no new announcements. Here are some highlights:
FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY: The Tories repeated their promise to order a line-by-line audit of all government spending as part of their efforts to find billions in efficiencies. They also renewed their pledge to call a commission meant to identify ways to boost financial transparency.
CAP AND TRADE: The government said it would move forward with its plan to scrap the cap-and-trade system, having already revoked the regulation that governs the program. It also vowed to end "unfair, unaffordable green energy contracts" it said were imposed on rural communities.
EDUCATION REFORM: The province said it would replace "failed ideological experiments in the classroom" with "tried-and-true methods" when it comes to math and sex ed. The government announced Wednesday that schools would temporarily revert to an older version of the sex-ed curriculum rather than the updated version brought in by the Liberals three years ago.
EXPANDING BEER AND WINE SALES: The Tories said they would trust adults to make responsible choices and allow consumers to buy beer and wine in convenience stores, grocery stores and big-box stores.
HONOURING VETS AND POLICE: The government pledged to build a new monument to veterans of the war in Afghanistan and said it would create a dedicated hotline to help military families. The Tories also promised to remove restrictions on police officers they said "treat those in uniform as subjects of suspicion and scorn." The province has already stalled the implementation of a law that would have strengthened oversight of law enforcement and redefined police officers' duties.
