Finance Minister Ernie Eves recently tabled his update for the second quarter of 1999/2000. For the most part, it can be viewed as and early Christmas present for Ontario taxpayers. The highlights:

 

Budget deficit for 1999/2000 is projected at $1.1 billion, down $1 billion from last May's budget plan. Mr. Eves has projected a balanced budget for 2000/2001.

Ontario's growth rate for 1999/2000 was predicted at 3.7. This figure has been revised to real growth in the Ontario GDP of 5%.

177,000 new jobs have been created in fiscal year 1999/2000, most of them full-time. Moreover, job growth is up in all regions of the province, it's not just the major urban centres that are fueling these numbers.

Retail sales are up 7.3%, housing starts are up by 24.3%. Meanwhile, exports have grown by 16.2%.

The second wave of income tax cuts, another 20% over four years, on top of the 30% cut already implemented, is underway.

By all accounts the Ontario economy is in overdrive. Even the harshest critics of the tax cuts agenda can not discount the evidence of phenomenal growth and increased government revenues as testament to the liberating power of relieving the tax burden.

While the indicators are encouraging, some historical perspective is warranted. The balanced budget for 2000/2001 will only be the fourth such occurrence in 100 years and the first for a Conservative government since 1967/1968. This is hardly a record of fiscal prudence and leadership that current or former MPPs can be proud of. It shows that Ontario has languished under cowardly fiscal leadership for most of the century. Political parties of all stripes have mortgaged our future.

Yet another reason why passage of Bill-7 - the Taxpayer Protection and Balanced Budget Act - was so essential for our future. The legacy of lethargic leadership of the 20th century deserves to be left in the century to which we shall shortly bid adieu.

The other challenge for the Tories remains on the expenditure side. Projected program spending is up $259 million to $47.284 billion over the budget forecast last May. Annualized, this amounts to an extra half a billion dollars in spending by next March.

And the Auditor General recently noted that Health Care restructuring costs could skyrocket to $3.9 billion by 2003, up from the original Health Services Restructuring Commission (HSRC) estimate of $2.1 billion.

In addition, public debt interest charges continue to render 16 cents out of every tax dollar sent to Queen's Park utterly and completely useless. In other words, we're getting 84 cents of services for every Ontario tax dollar paid.

We also should be mindful that government revenue generating activities- which basically punish the weakest and most stupid among us - continue to reap large windfalls. The Liquor Board, Ontario Casinos and the Lottery Corporation will account for the bulk of some $3.2 billion in expected profits. Another $6.7 billion in revenues in fees - read: taxes by another name - will come from speeding fines, license fees, and other assorted user fees.

The bottom line, Christmas came early for taxpayers but Santa still needs to take off some weight by reducing his expenditures and $10 billion appetite for lottery and user fee revenues.