Liberals have all the wrong things on the radar

Last week, MPPs returned to work at Queen’s Park for the first time in two months.
I was looking forward to a productive session addressing the issues that matter most to ordinary Ontario families. Well, after one week back, I have good news and bad news.
The good news: If choosing a new provincial flower, changing license plate slogans and censoring films are your top priorities, Dalton McGuinty is working hard for you.
Not much has changed since MPPs left Queen’s Park in December. The things that really matter most to ordinary Ontario families still do not appear to be priorities for the McGuinty government.
Instead of thinking about changing the provincial flower, the government should be doing a better job of fulfilling its commitment to fix health care, our No. 1 priority. Instead, we’ve seen a regressive health tax, under-funded hospitals, service cuts, fights with doctors and other health caregivers, surgery shutdowns, overcrowded emergency rooms and 757 nurses laid off in communities across Ontario with more to come.
This week, the Kyoto accord came into effect. Ontario must take action to stop climate change. Our province is the second-largest producer of greenhouse gases in Canada, but since the negotiation of Kyoto in 1997, Ontario’s emissions have gone up, not down. Unfortunately, the provincial government has no plan to reduce emissions.
And instead of talking about censoring films, the McGuinty government should be focusing on coming up with a plan to protect good jobs in regions like Northern Ontario. Since the McGuinty government came to power, the North has lost 6,000 jobs and seen a 1.6 per cent drop in employment. Especially hard hit is the forestry industry, which is seeing mill closures in communities across the North. Unfortunately, there are no answers and no plan for workers, their families and their communities on this most pressing issue.
Ordinary Ontario families deserve better. In the weeks and months ahead, I’ll be focusing on the issues that matter most to you. You and your family deserve better health care, good schools, good jobs and help making it from paycheque to paycheque - not broken promises and out-of-touch government.