The debate over job creation continued to take centre stage in the Ontario provincial election on Monday, as the party leaders each tried to position themselves as the champion of economic growth.
For his part, Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty promised to create 68,000 jobs across the Greater Toronto Area as the province expands the GO train network and upgrades service levels.
Speaking at the Toronto Board of Trade, McGuinty outlined a $6.8-billion infusion to the province's transit system, aimed at expanding the network of train tracks, improving train stations and allowing for two-way service throughout the day.
McGunity has previously suggested his government would ensure service levels by extending a money-back offer to passengers whose trains are running 20 minutes behind schedule.
McGuinty said there was a lot of talk about the economy, but the Liberals were the only party to have a sound plan on how to create quality jobs.
"We are aiming high. We plan to build a high-skills, high-wage economy; the kind of economy that offers quality goods and services to the world because we have the world's best workforce," McGuinty said.
During his own campaign stop, Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak continued to target the Liberal plan to offer a $10,000 tax credit to help offset training costs for new Canadians in highly trained professions.
Despite being chided by McGuinty for referring to new Canadian citizens as "foreign workers," Hudak continued to attack the plan as divisive. He questioned how the Liberals could reward companies for hiring one person while not offering any help to others.
"I believe in an Ontario that should be a leader in job creation, and creating jobs for everyone," Hudak told reporters outside a hardware store in Mississauga. "How do you do that? You make us friendly for investment again, you lower taxes."
New Democrat Leader Andrea Horwath, meantime, announced plans to cancel HST breaks received by big corporations and instead reward them for creating new jobs.
While speaking in a luxury box at the Rogers Centre, Horwath said she would cancel a planned HST exemption for corporations that purchase box seats or premium packages at sporting and entertainment venues.
She said an NDP government would offer tax breaks to companies that create new jobs, train new workers or invest in the province. She has previously offered rebates for up to $5,000 when a company hires someone to a newly created position.
Horwath said the NDP plan was a better alternative to giving corporations tax breaks "in the hope that some crumbs will spill onto our tables."
Horwath later added that she was disappointed with the tone the election campaign has taken so far, with Hudak and McGuinty attacking and insulting one another.
"Regular Ontarians are getting lost in the shuffle while Mr. Hudak and Mr. McGuinty have a war of words," she said. "It shouldn't be about who can hurl the biggest insult or who can throw the biggest stone."
McGuinty targeted on school policies
McGuinty was forced on Monday to defend his policies on banning junk food and letting schools fundraise on Monday as opposing leaders took aim at the "education premier."
Hudak called McGuinty's school junk food ban a "bizarre obsession" that distracted from real problems in schools.
"Dalton McGuinty has shown a bizarre interest in the kind of food that we pack for our kids for school, when I think parents are worried about the quality of education they're receiving in the classroom," Hudak said at an event in Mississauga on Monday.
Meantime, a report by the People for Education suggested the reliance on fundraising created inequality in the education system, with schools featuring more students from low-income families tending to raise far less that other schools.
McGuinty said he would keep his ban on junk food intact, while continuing to allow schools to fundraise. McGuinty said fundraising was an important tradition for schools.
Howarth said on Monday in Toronto that the NDP's education policy will be released soon and will focus on the inequalities schools face in terms of fundraising.
McGuinty defended his stance on junk food, saying that what's really important is class sizes and test scores.
"Is it important to us as parents that our kids eat in a healthy way? I think so too," he said. "But that certainly has not been the main focus of what we've done in our schools."
With files from The Canadian Press and a report from CTV Toronto's Paul Bliss.
Follow Paul Bliss on Twitter at @Blissblogs
