The New Democrat MPP for Windsor-Tecumseh says the Ford government's Fall Economic Statement is a "scary document."
Percy Hatfield, speaking on AM800's The Afternoon News, says the document does very little for residents in our region.
It does provide relief for low-income workers, as those earning $30,000 or less will no longer have to pay provincial income tax starting next year -- a savings of about $850 a year -- and those earning between $30,000 and $38,000 will get a tax cut.
But Hatfield says those people would be better off by getting a raise the Ford government is eliminating.
"Saying that if you earn $30,000 or less, you won't pay a personal income tax. But if you are earning $30,000 or less, you'd be better off getting a $15 an hour wage," he says.
Hatfield claims the tax breaks for the rich are double that of low income earners.
The Ford government says it has reduced the 2018-19 deficit by $500-million to $14.5 billion. That was achieved through cutting $3.2 billion in expenses with measures such as a freeze on hiring and limits on discretionary spending in the public service.
"They say they're an open and transparent government, one of the first things that jumped out at me is they are going to remove land lines and fax machines from government offices," says Hatfield. "I mean, if you want to talk to somebody within the bureaucracy, how are you going to contact them? You can't have all of these people walking around with cellphones."
Starting December 2, the LCBO and Beer Store will be allowed to stay open from 9 a.m. until 11 p.m. seven days a week.
But Hatfield says no one locally complained to him about not having enough time to purchase booze, and the move is just to grab headlines.
"I'm not one to go out drinking at 9 in the morning or I don't want to run to the liquor store at 11 o'clock at night either but that's probably going to be the same hours for the cannabis stores," suggests Hatfield.
He's also critical of the consolidation of three oversight positions -- the environmental commissioner, the child and youth advocate and the French language services commissioner.
The NDP member doesn't think the existing auditor general or provincial ombudsman can handle the extra duties.
Hatfield argues the cuts by the Ford government will hurt Windsor-Essex.
"They're going to end rent control in any new units, and if you're an owner and you say you're going to make a few modest renovations here, and then you say it's now a new unit, I can charge whatever I want, that is going to drive up the cost of housing," says Hatfield.
Hatfield also predicts another multi-billion dollar project will be cut by the Ford government.
"They're reviewing high speed rail, what does that mean? That means forget high speed rail, we're not going to see it," he says.
The provincial government is also halting planned tax increases for various groups including small businesses. Those taxes would have poured some $308 million into the public purse, according to the document. The Progressive Conservatives are also reversing tax changes brought in by the Liberals in the last budget, which included the creation of two new tax brackets and an increase in tax rates for the province's highest earners.
Hatfield adds "we don't know the Ontario that's ahead of us."