This week the Ontario government served up some good news for a change. The threat of the so-called "fat tax" melted away. Restaurant owners, anti-poverty groups, and taxpayers across the province cheered as the government shelved its proposal to impose the provincial sales tax on meals under $4.00.

So if the tax is gone, why are taxpayers left with a bad taste in their mouths That's because in the run-up to the May 18 provincial budget, the real problem remains on the menu. It's the government's addiction to higher spending.

Since taking office a scant six months ago, Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty has made spending announcements totalling over $2.5 billion, including $576 million to write the cost of closing down coal fired plants, $16.3 million in tourism promotion and $350,000 on pre-budget town halls. And let's not forget corporate welfare for automakers to the tune of $500 million - setting a dangerous precedent for costly government intervention in the economy. All this when the province is facing a deficit the government pegs at $5.6 billion.

In doling out tax dollars the government doesn't have, Mr. McGuinty threatens to replicate the mistakes of the previous administration, which left taxpayers far in the red. When you run the numbers, it becomes clear that the former Progressive Conservative government didn't falter because it taxed too little, but because it spent too much. While Mike Harris did make modest budget cuts early in his mandate, by the time his successor Ernie Eves delivered the 2003 budget, per capita spending, adjusted for inflation, had risen to levels on par with those of the deficit-financed Bob Rae regime.

Sadly, spendaholic governments can find endless ways to guzzle taxpayers' green. Let's face it, it is easier to spend more than act responsibly and balance the budget. But like too many rounds of drinks the night before, the next morning everyone wakes up with a hangover - and when government goes on a bender, it's taxpayers who pay the price.

At some point, responsible leaders have to say "enough is enough". Premier McGuinty has the obligation - and the opportunity - to stop spending and reinvent government. That means tackling the big political and philosophical question: what is government's role Is it to sell liquor, run amusement parks, bring late-night television shows to Toronto, and give money to big corporations Or is it to find ways of delivering core services, like health, education and justice, as efficiently and effectively as possible, by spending within taxpayers' means

Only by streamlining government and focusing on key priorities can the government keep from getting fat itself. And timing is of the essence. As other successful deficit-slaying politicians know, tough choices are best made at the beginning of an electoral mandate, not at the end. McGuinty should take a page from his federal counterpart, Prime Minister Paul Martin, who today enjoys annual surpluses because he reigned in spending back in the mid-1990's. If our Premier doesn't curb spending now, odds are he won't balance the books this year or next - and taxpayers will have to fork over even more money for debt repayment instead of social services.

Reinvention and prioritizing are what's required to get Ontario back on its fiscal feet. Premier McGuinty needs to break his government's spending addiction once and for all. So while we celebrate this week's victory with a (provincial) tax-free Tim Hortons' coffee and donut, let's remember there are bigger fish to fry than the fat tax.