Hydro One sale to bring in 25% less than expected; Liberal MPPs can expect to suffer consequences

TORONTO, Oct. 12, 2015 /CNW/ - Liberal MPPs staying in their home communities after Thanksgiving for "constituency week" can expect to hear first-hand just how angry potential voters are about Premier Wynne's scheme to privatize Hydro One. 

"We're being ripped off and it just keeps getting worse," says Rosario Marchese, a former Toronto MPP and one of the many people behind the Hydro One Not For Sale campaign.

Marchese points out that when the scheme was first revealed six months ago, Liberals told Ontarians they expected to raise $2.25 billion from the initial sale of 15 per cent of Hydro One. But on Friday, the Liberals drastically reduced that estimate, down 25% to just $1.7 billion.

"Without our permission, Kathleen Wynne is taking away something valuable that we all own and giving it to her rich backers on Bay Street," says Marchese. "Now, we find out she's giving it away for even less than she first said."

Even before this latest revelation, opposition to the scheme was overwhelming. Four of every five Ontarians are opposed to the scheme, as are more than 170 city and municipal councils and nearly 40 chambers of commerce.  

Wynne acknowledges that most people in the province are opposed to her scheme. But she says she's made up her mind and that we must all simply accept that.

"This is a sweet deal for the rich on Bay Street. I'm sure Kathleen Wynne won't have to worry about her livelihood after she's done in office," says Marchese. "But the other Liberal MPPs should be asking themselves what they'll have to fall back on when they're voted out in the next election."

Marchese says voters will have daily reminders of being ripped-off:

• Their hydro rates will skyrocket
• Their local economies will wither as businesses close or relocate because of high rates
• Their schools, hospitals, and roads will crumble without the revenue hydro once provided

"The good news," says Marchese, "is that we can still stop this rip-off before it's done. Liberal MPPs are all home for 'Constituency Week' and I'm sure many of them will find out first-hand just how little their potential voters like being ripped off."

SOURCE Citizens Coalition Against Privatization

For more information or to find a spokesperson close to your community, contact Rosario Marchese at 416-418-7367 or [email protected]