During the first televised leaders’ debate of the provincial election on Monday, Ontario Liberal Party Leader Kathleen Wynne said she was disappointed in comments from Tory candidate Doug Ford.
During the debate, Ford was offered a chance to ask a question of his rivals, either Wynne or Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath.
He turned to Wynne and said, “You’ve got a nice smile on your face,” to which she responded, “So do you.”
When asked what she made of the comment, Wynne said it was not part of a policy debate.
“I think that it’s disappointing. It’s not part of a substantial discussion of policy,” Wynne said in a scrum after the debate.
“You know, I think that there are many of us that come to maybe expect that kind of comment, that kind of behaviour.”
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After the comment about her smile, Ford then asked her about Wynne’s dedication to the people of Ontario, citing rising taxes and the high rate of pay to the CEO of Hydro One, whom he called the “six-million-dollar man.”
“I truly believe you got into politics for the right reasons, when did you lose your way?” Ford asked in the debate.
“Well, I got into politics to put in place supports for people,” Wynne said in the post-debate scrum. “Since I’ve been premier, I’ve continued to grow this province… but we know there’s more people need.”
Wynne said she invested money into the “degraded” electrical system for the province, which made costs go up.
WATCH: Doug Ford slams Hydro One board for CEO severance provisions
During general debate after the question, Horwath questioned Ford on how he was different from Wynne.
“You’re going to put your own cronies in place,” Horwath suggested while referencing Hydro One.
“The electricity system under Mr. Ford and Ms. Wynne will stay in private hands, and will operate in the interest of private shareholders,” Horwath said. “It does not have to be this way.”
The provincial campaign, which is set to officially kick off on Wednesday, will be Ford’s first as leader while this will be Horwath’s third time and Wynne’s second.
Election Day in Ontario is June 7.
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