NDP Agriculture Critic John VanthofNDP Agriculture Critic John Vanthof
Sarnia

NDP Questions Government's Use Of BRM Dollars

The NDP's Agriculture Critic says there was very little positive news for the agri-food industry in last week's provincial budget.

John Vanthof points out the budget included a major budget cost-saving from the provincial Business Risk Management program.

According to the NDP, the government has taken advantage of the rebound in the primary agriculture sector and returned it's share of the program's funding to the province's general revenue.

Vanthof argues that's concerning, saying farmers know the folly of betting on commodity prices long term.

He also suggests the planned sale of Hydro One will lead to even higher rates for agriculture and rural Ontario in general.

The NDP critic also says the thirty million dollars assigned to supporting the installation of natural gas in many rural communities and the natural gas expansion proposal itself promised in the previous budget disappeared from last week's document.

Read More Local Stories

Rogers Centre in Toronto before a game between the Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles, August 7, 2024. Photo by Mark Brown/WindsorNewsToday.ca

Scoreboard, May 13

The Toronto Blue Jays lost 7-6 in 10 innings to Tampa Bay. The Kitchener Rangers are OHL champions.