Hydro prices to dominate Queen’s Park debate for second straight week

Hydro rates are expected to be hot topic at Queen’s Park for the second week in a row.

As the Liberals are said to be debating several options to reduce electricity prices, the NDP is set to introduce its own plan to reign in rates.

The opposition parties are refusing to back down from their criticism of the Liberals over hydro rates that have doubled over the last decade.

Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown said electricity prices are hurting small businesses when he visited London over the weekend, touring North Star Ice before meeting with local media to further criticize what he called Premier Kathleen Wynne’s “hydro crisis.”

Meantime, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath plans to unveil the details of what’s being called “Pay Less, Own More: The Ontario NDP’s Plan to Cut Hydro Prices” at 10 a.m. Monday at Queen’s Park. Horwath will answer questions from the media about the plan at 2:30 p.m.

While a final decision hasn’t been made, Wynne and her cabinet are reportedly planning further reductions on top of the eight per cent HST rebate that was introduced January 1. It’s expected to save taxpayers roughly $130 per year.

In addition to providing more relief for rural and northern customers, as well as low-income Ontarians, the Liberals are deliberating a reduction to the global adjustment fee.

The fee has risen dramatically since being introduced in 2005 as a means to recoup the expected $50 billion dollar investments in hydro infrastructure and green energy. It accounted for 85 per cent of the cost on hydro bills in 2016, though most customers don’t see it since it’s included within the per-kilowatt-hour price.

The province is considering changing the way the fee is calculated so the costs are spread out more gradually, though some are concerned that it could increase overall costs in the long term.

The Liberals are expected to finalize and unveil their plans to reduce rates in the coming weeks.