Ontario taxpayers are set to receive $200 cheques in the mail early next year, a $3-billion plan the premier suggests is not tied to a possible early election — though the opposition leaders have their doubts.
Premier Doug Ford and Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy made the announcement Tuesday, a day ahead of the province's fall economic statement, which serves as a mini budget.
Everyone who filed 2023 tax returns should expect to receive a $200 cheque, plus an additional $200 per child, Ford said.
"These $200 rebates will make a big difference for families across the province, with cheques arriving early in the new year," he said.
"That's money that families can use to pay off their credit card after the holidays, to buy a winter coat for their kids, or to cover the cost of gassing up the family car to make up for the cost of the Liberal carbon tax."
The announcement comes as Ford has refused to rule out the possibility of an election sooner than the next fixed date of June 2026, and while he has said he will not call one this year, opposition parties are preparing for a possible spring contest.
The two are not related, Ford suggested, saying his government has been looking for ways to save Ontarians money all along, including on transit fares, a gas tax cut and licence plate renewal fees. He then went on to attack the Liberals.
"They'd increase taxes, take money out of your pockets," he said, concluding his answer by saying the Liberals and NDP are "basically the same party."
Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie said she will donate her $200 cheque to the party as it gears up for a possible early election. She did not mince words on what she called a money-giving "gimmick."
"The premier is attempting to bribe Ontarians with their own money," she said.
New Democrat Leader Marit Stiles said the cheques do not provide any long-lasting help.
"I think a lot of people are struggling right now, but a one-time payment right before an election isn't going to solve the affordability crisis for Ontarians," she said.
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said it doesn't make sense to dole out this money without any means testing.
"It is ridiculous that millionaires and billionaires like Galen Weston are getting a $200 cheque when so many Ontarians can't afford a place to live tonight," he said.
Many homeless people will not get the cheques because they haven't filed tax returns, said Lorraine Lam, an outreach worker in downtown Toronto.
"Once again Ford does not consider the needs of some of the most vulnerable," Lam said.
"There are people who are unhoused and precariously housed who do not have access to the supports they need to get annual taxes done on time."
Ford defended sending the cheques to millionaires and even billionaires.
"They're taxpayers," he said. "These are tax dollars going back to the taxpayers, and we're going to give it back to every single person in Ontario. And if they have a child, they're getting an additional $200 because life's too expensive right now."
Ford and Bethlenfalvy said the government can afford to send out $3 billion worth of cheques now because of higher-than-expected revenues, including due to the impact of inflation on provincial sales tax money in government coffers.
