NDP Leader Andrea Horwath says she’ll fight against the privatization of electricity agencies and the “fire sale” of public assets in Ontario.
Earlier this year the Liberal government set up an advisory council, chaired by TD Bank Group CEO Ed Clark, to find ways to “optimize” the value of Ontario Power Generation, Hydro One and the Liquor Control Board of Ontario.
The plan could involve inviting large pension funds to invest in the provincial energy and liquor agencies while retaining public ownership, but Premier Kathleen Wynne has not said what could be the subject of a total or partial sale.
Horwath says selling off bits and pieces is a “slippery slope.”
She says a hydro sale would mean more expensive bills for families and businesses, and selling the LCBO would deprive the province of $1.7 billion in revenue each year.
The province announced last week it was following through on a pledge to sell a parcel of land on the Toronto waterfront owned by the LBCO and while Horwath says she is “prepared to look at the details” of that sale, that shouldn’t be confused with her commitment to “making sure the LCBO remains in public hands.”
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