Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath each penned a letter this weekend letting the other one know they want to avoid a snap election over disagreements about the Ontario budget.
Ontarians had ended last week with the looming threat of an election, as the Liberal premier said he would call a vote if the NDP tried to make any changes to the bill.
According to the National Post, McGuinty’s letter read:
The budget must remain intact. (…) You need only ensure your caucus lives up to the agreements you have already made.
And Horwath’s words to the premier:
I am glad the premier has changed his tune of the last few days and is no longer making election threats. (…) I am now more convinced than ever that we can avoid an election no one wants.
The Liberals are proposing a series of cuts and austerity measures to restore Ontario’s flagging economy, which has been hit by the loss of manufacturing jobs and lower export output. On a positive note, RBC has issued a report stating that the province’s growth will pick up in 2012:
Improvements in provincial export performance will be the key to this growth, while brisk residential construction activity will play a significant supporting role.