But it was Sousa's announcement of free college and university tuition for students from families making $50,000 or less that had many in the province talking.
Sudbury Liberal MPP Glenn Thibeault said it was “thrilling” for him to be part of a government that is making post-secondary affordable for low-income families.
"I've always said that post-secondary education is supposed to be the social equalizer,” Thibeault said Thursday. “To see this today is, for me, to be perfectly honest, thrilling. For families that come from an income of $50,000 or less, tuition is free. No ifs, ands or buts."
He said about half of students from families who make $83,000 or less a year will be able to get enough grants to make it free for them, as well. While he wasn't sure how much the promise will cost, he said it will be offset by eliminating education tax credits.
"What this budget is all about, No. 1, is to grow the economy and create jobs,” he said. “And as we're creating jobs, you now will have people going into university and into colleges, getting that good education. So they can come out of there and get that good-paying job and contribute to society."
While increasing gasoline by 4.3 cents a litre will be harder on people in the North, Thibeault said money raised will only be used for green initiatives.
"I understand people's concerns in Sudbury and Northern Ontario when it comes to gas prices,” he said. “We wanted to be upfront and transparent with what are some of the potential costs relating to cap and trade. One of these is a cost that will be put the gas retailer. Because we all know that fossil fuels are very high in carbon.
So this will be a cost that's put on to the wholesaler of fuels."
Nickel Belt MPP France Gélinas, a New Democrat, said the tuition fee relief was welcome, but it comes in a province that already charges more for post-secondary school than the rest of the country.
"Tuition in Ontario is the highest of all the other provinces for every course that is offered," Gélinas said.
She welcomed the $333 million for services for kids with autism, saying it was long overdue.
"This is a step in the right direction,” Gélinas said. “The long, long wait time children with mental health needs, as well as the long, long wait time for children with autism, was cruel and unusual. It had to be addressed and this should help it."
But she said there's no relief for hospitals, some of whom have had to layoff nurses because their budgets are frozen. And she's still waiting for the 15 per cent cut in auto insurance rates the Liberals promised the NDP three years ago in exchange for supporting the then-minority government.
"You know as much about it as we do," she said, when asked the status of that promise. "This is a promise that was made ... that has not been kept … They have failed miserably. They have not met the 15 per cent (while) insurance company profits continues to go sky high."
David Boyce, past president of the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, said their dislike of cap and trade, as well as the (now delayed) Ontario pension plan, is well know. But he said he liked some of what was in Sousa's budget.
"We're a big believer in education, so we think that's good move, making it cheaper for lower-income families to send their kids to school," Boyce said.
"We're certainly concerned with the $300 billion debt that the Province of Ontario has – it's a big number."
Interest payments on the debt each year is $11.8 billion – almost $1 billion a month, he said. So it's important the Liberals keep to their promise of balance the books in 2017-2018.
"So we're moving in the right direction -- as long as we get there," he said. "The fact there's no changes in taxation for business is a good thing.
“Beyond that, there doesn't seem to me to be a whole lot in it that's about Northern Ontario, or for Sudbury and the mining sector. No relief, really, in respect to electricity prices (And) I think cap and trade is likely to be harder on a Northern Ontario resident than a southern Ontario resident."
You can read the full Ontario 2016 budget here.
Budget highlights:
- Free university and college tuition for families making $50,000 a year or less;
- Increase in cigarette and wine taxes;
- The new cap and trade system will raise $1.9 billion, that will go into a fund dedicated for environmental programsl
- As part of cap and trade, motorists will see gas prices to go up by 4.3 cents a litre, and homeowners who use natural gas to heat their houses should expect their monthly heating bills to increase by $5.
- Deficit is projected to be $4.3 billion this fiscal year, based on GDP growth of 2.2 per cent. It's projected to be balanced the following year, based on 2.4 per cent GDP growth.
