Red Tories are appalled that the Ford government cancelled the basic-income pilot program — despite the fact that, during the election campaign, Christine Elliott (now Ontario’s health minister and deputy premier) and PC spokesperson Melissa Lantsman confirmed that the experiment would be allowed to run its course before any decisions were made about its future.
The program, which was originally intended to last three years, allowed thousands of low-income Ontarians to sign up for a guaranteed annual income of about $17,000 for singles, or $24,000 for families. The only condition was that they had to allow their individual circumstances to be studied to see whether and in what ways their lives improved. Some conservatives believe that a basic-income program would save taxpayers’ money, since a simplified social-assistance system would require fewer civil servants to administer. It's also possible that such a program could help lower-income Ontarians lead healthier lives, which could in turn relieve some pressure on the province's overstretched health-care system.
Now, not only has the new government cancelled the program, but the minister responsible for it, Lisa MacLeod, has also denied that the cancellation constitutes a broken promise. Many red Tories now think that MacLeod looks foolish and that the government looks heartless. (The government, perhaps tacitly acknowledging that it chose to end the program too quickly, has just announced that there will be a “lengthy and compassionate runway” before the program is wound down.)
Hugh Segal, one-time chief of staff to former PC premier Bill Davis and a long-time champion of the pilot program, called the decision a “horrific mistake,” adding: “I am embarrassed, as a Progressive Conservative.”
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