TORONTO - A day after launching an election platform that promises billions in new spending, Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown is defending his plan as an affordable alternative to the current Liberal government's spending habits.
Brown says his plan is fully costed and will not see a Tory government run deficits, therefore adding to Ontario's debt, beyond the first year if he is elected.
The platform says if the PCs are elected they would run a $2.8 billion deficit in 2018-2019, posting modest surpluses in the subsequent years until the end of the government's term.
The Tory plan, launched Saturday at a policy convention in Toronto, promises a tax cut for the middle class, a child care tax credit, a further 12 per cent cut to hydro rates and $1.9 billion in new mental health spending over the next decade.
Brown says the PC plan would reduce Ontario's $312 billion debt by a billion dollars over his four year term.
The PC plan - called the People's Guarantee - contains more than 140 promises and comes six months before Ontarians go to the polls in a provincial election.
Brown says if he can't keep his five main promises he will not seek a second term as premier.
The Liberals say the Tory plan is better suited for the "fiction section of Chapters," while the New Democrats are calling it a disappointing "tweak" of Liberal programs.