“It’s time for the north to have a partner at Queen’s Park.”

That from NDP Leader Andrea Horwath to northern municipal leaders gathered in North Bay for the annual FONOM conference.

She says her party would cut all hydro bills by up to 30 per cent, remove rural and northern delivery charges, stop the cuts to northern hospitals, protect local schools and get trains to northern Ontario running again.

“It was shocking when the Liberals decided several years ago to shut down the Northlander, I made a commitment in my speech that New Democrats would turn that around, that we would work with the ONTC to increase the inter-connectivity of communities,” she says.

Horwath also says there’s no mention of the ONTC in the Liberal’s latest budget and there’s no mention of the Ring of Fire, and it’s huge untapped potential, either.

With an election just over a year away and the resurgence of the Northern Ontario Party, Horwath was asked if that would dilute support for the NDP.

“Certainly something that we take a look at, but I think people know that New Democrats do what we say we’re going to do and that we’re committed to making sure northern Ontario is no longer ignored,” she says, adding that she has a number of MPP’s that represent ridings in the north.

PC Leader Patrick Brown addressed the FONOM conference yesterday (Wednesday) while Premier Kathleen Wynne speaks to municipal leaders this afternoon.

Filed under: fonom, ndp-leader-andrea-horwath, north-bay