The Ontario election is just days away and with the deadline to cast a ballot looming, voters who tuned out much of the race might now find themselves scrambling to decide how to vote.
The three main parties have all released platforms but while the Liberals and NDP have provided cost estimates for their promises to voters, only the Progressive Conservatives continue to refuse to provide a full costing of how they plan to pay for their pledges.
For more information on what the NDP and the PCs are promising, click here and here.
But if you are deciding whether to vote for the Liberals, here is everything you need to know about what Leader Kathleen Wynne has promised.
On the economy
First things first: the Liberals tabled much (but not all) of their platform in the form of Budget 2018, announced in March.
The budget lays out a plan for roughly $20 billion in new spending.
It also predicts Ontario’s books will not be balanced again anytime soon and anticipates running deficits of between $6.5 billion and $6.7 billion for the next four years.
WATCH BELOW: Could the 2018 provincial budget be Kathleen Wynne’s last?
The overall size of the budget, which pumps billions into health care, child care and other programs, has grown to $158.5 billion this year, up nearly 12 per cent from $141.1 billion last year.
READ MORE: How big is Ontario’s hydro problem? And can the Liberals, NDP or PCs fix it?
Ontario Liberal candidate Charles Sousa, who is also finance minister, defended that plan at the time and characterized the spending as needed investments.
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“I’m confident that as we move forward to invest in our economy, it will create greater growth, enabling us to have a stronger GDP and we’ll come to balance,” Sousa said.
On health care
A great many of the pledges outlined by the Liberals have to do with social spending, including health care.
Key among them is a proposal to tackle lengthy wait times at Ontario hospitals and increase funding for mental health support and other kinds of health care.
In terms of numbers, the Liberals are promising to boost funding by $822 million for hospitals.
WATCH BELOW: Wynne Liberals promise healthcare, daycare and homecare investments
That would be in addition to a planned $19 billion spent over the next 10 years to build and renovate hospitals.
Another $17 billion would go to increase support for mental health.
READ MORE: Ontario Liberals announce $822M boost for hospitals
As well, the Liberals have vowed to offer drug and dental coverage of up to $400 per person, $600 per couple and an additional $50 for each child in a family.
That plan would cost $800 million over two years.
The Liberals have not announced the details of which drugs they plan to cover under the proposal.
On support for families
When it comes to proposed supports for families, the Liberal promises revolve largely around daycare.
For $2.2 billion, the Liberals are vowing to provide free licensed child care for families with children between the age of two-and-a-half years until the child starts kindergarten.
That program would not roll out until September 2020, one year before the next scheduled election.
WATCH BELOW: Ont. Leaders’ Debate: Wynne to Ford “Have you been to a daycare?”
In addition, the plan includes a promise to provide an extra $534 million over the next six years to build more child care spaces.
Roughly 10,000 of those would be in schools and another 4,000 in community-based spaces.
READ MORE: Ontario Liberals promise free preschool for all in 2020, but is that realistic?
The proposed plan would ensure Ontario preschoolers have access to free licensed child care from age 2.5 until they start kindergarten, beginning September 2020 at a cost of about $2.2 billion. New funding details included $534 million over the next six years to build 10,000 child care spaces in schools and 4,000 community-based spaces.
The Liberals also want to spend $300 million to try to eliminate the waitlist for special needs education for children, and hire 2,000 new teachers and workers to assist with special education needs, and spend $62 million on autism support.
They also vow to pass legislation to end the strike at York University.
On seniors
Under the Liberal proposals currently on the table, seniors under a Wynne government would get a 15 per cent credit on public transit.
They would also get a $750 benefit to help cover home maintenance costs, which would cost the province $1 billion over three years.
As well, the Liberal plan to expand universal drug coverage to those over the age of 65 would cost $575 million per year.
READ MORE: Ontario Liberal government to make prescription drugs free for people 65 and older
The Liberals are also vowing to make changes regarding pensions.
Specifically, the platform includes a plan to let individuals with a pension plan more easily move it as they move jobs, and give pensioners “greater priority” if the company they work for goes bankrupt, although it is not entirely clear what that means.
It also proposes creating an opt-in pension option for self-employed workers in the province.
On transit and development
When it comes to getting transit built, the Liberal plan includes a promise to partially fund Toronto’s Downtown Relief Line, the Yonge North subway extension and the Waterfront light rail transit service through funds in Budget 2018.
Wynne also pledges to add the Greenbelt as a provincial protected area in order to prevent it being opened up for development.
Lastly, the plan includes a promise to have fares for GO Transit and the Union-Pearson Express within Toronto match those for Presto users, at $3.
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