May 30, 2008
By Kate Adams
BayToday.ca
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Queen?s Park ? Liberal MPP Monique Smith (Nipissing) today skipped the vote for
Thornhill Progressive Conservative MPP Peter Shurman?s Bill 78, which would have
provided real relief for low-income seniors and disabled persons struggling with
skyrocketing property tax and assessment rates.
While members of the PC and NDP caucuses joined ranks to support the bill, every
member of the Liberal Party present in the Legislature voted to defeat it. A
number of key Liberals did not even show up for the vote, including the Minster
Responsible for Seniors, Aileen Carroll.
?Bill 78 would have provided
thousands of dollars in property tax relief annually to low-income seniors and
disabled persons,? said Shurman. ?Contrast that with the meagre $250 proposed by
the Liberals. This fall, the property assessment freeze will be lifted and
property owners across Ontario will be hit with three years worth of increases.
Which will help seniors more? $250 or the thousands of dollars proposed by Bill
78? This was a no-brainer!?
?This was a win-win proposal. The only
conclusion to be drawn from this was that the Liberal caucus defeated Bill 78
because it was not a Liberal bill. Again, they put their partisanship ahead of
the needs of Ontarians and in particular our seniors and disabled persons,? said
Shurman.
Quotes from today?s debate:
?This bill
will allow low-income seniors and disabled persons to remain independent in
their homes longer. It will stimulate the economy by providing additional
disposable income to low-income seniors and disabled persons, and it will
provide a common property tax deferral property program across Ontario and get
rid of the current patchwork system.?
Peter Shurman, PC MPP
Thornhill
?Of course there is a threat this year; we are already hearing
the news reports of this triple whammy after assessments had been frozen for the
three previous years. That?s certainly going to be reflected in my communities,
and certainly seniors and other vulnerable people on fixed incomes are simply
not going to have the means nor the resources to accommodate these huge
increases in their property assessments.?
Laurie Scott, PC MPP
Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock
?From time to time, and it?s rare
unfortunately, opposition members? private bills go to committee and after fine
tuning in committee they get passed. I believe strongly this bill should go to
committee?
Peter Kormos, NDP MPP Welland
?Unlike the comments by the
member for Davenport?$250 and $500 is not going to do very much, particularly
when on a modest income you?re looking at taxes, certainly in the city of
Toronto?I?m sure in Thornhill as well?of at least $4,000 to $5,000 and more per
year. I know in my riding I have seniors who are going to lose their houses if
something isn?t done when these new assessments come out.?
Cheri DiNovo, NDP
MPP Parkdale-High Park