In addition, she is still committed to balancing the budget without massive service cuts, which means the government must do more with less.
In a government as old as Ontario, which has had many different leaders and agendas, it is fair to say, there is likely some duplication. One of the ways Ms. Wynne can achieve savings without service cuts is to root out and eliminate this duplication.
The regional Ministry of Northern Development and Mines was created to give Northerners a voice in a government that very often tended to focus on the populous GTA. Over the years the lack of attention given to Northern Ontario provided separatist advocates with an argument that may have gained traction. By giving Northeners their own Ministry, it was hoped the region would continue contributing to the provincial discussion and economy, and not pursue their own agenda. Unfortunately, MNDM never found their voice for all of Northern Ontario and the separatist calls are rising again.
However tarnished Dalton McGuinty's record is, there are some things he got right. One of those things was the creation of the Northern Policy Institute, with the following mandate:
Northern Policy Institute will provide proactive, evidence-based and purpose driven recommendations to government and industry on policies and programs that strengthen the regional economy and create a more competitive and productive Northern Ontario.
and the following approach
- Non-partisan public policy research
- Engage in practical and applied research on current or emerging issues relevant to Northern Ontario
- Provide fair, balanced and objective assessments of issues
- Recognize value of multi-stakeholder, multi-disciplinary and multicultural contributions
- Complement research efforts of Northern Ontario’s post-secondary institutions and research institutions
- Ensure work publicly accessible, stimulate public engagement
Kathleen Wynne, in an open, transparent and accountable government should welcome the input from such a process. And if she does, one of the reasons for MNDM's existence becomes a duplication that needs to be evaluated
The other areas of MNDM responsibility could be folded into the Ministry of Economic Development Trade & Employment, Ministry of Transportation and Ministry of Natural Resources. The opportunity to flatten the government bureaucracy should be combined with a strategy to decentralize out of Toronto to the various regions of the province. Technology can be used to mitigate the expense of operating over a broader area, it will give policy makers a better view of the entire province, and savings from real estate costs should help pay for the process.
The restructuring should be done slowly so as to utilize attrition to its full extent, but the existence of a detailed plan would go a long way to reassuring Ontarians that fiscal responsibility has arrived in Queens Park.
The restructuring should be done slowly so as to utilize attrition to its full extent, but the existence of a detailed plan would go a long way to reassuring Ontarians that fiscal responsibility has arrived in Queens Park.
