Ontario’s debt has now ballooned to a staggering $420 billion, and while much of the public frustration is aimed at Premier Doug Ford, it’s time to face the uncomfortable truth: the real problem is Ontario’s voters.
Yes, Ford is Premier. But the federal government, led by figures like Mark Carney and his predecessors, has imposed crippling carbon-related taxes and regulations that are choking Ontario’s economy. What we’re witnessing isn’t just a provincial failure—it’s the consequence of federal overreach, misguided public policy, and a deeply confused electorate.
Voters Keep Choosing the Same Broken Model
Ontario has a long history of split-ticket voting: often electing a Liberal Prime Minister while choosing a Conservative Premier, or vice versa. This inconsistency has led to the rise of so-called “Progressive Conservatives”, a party structure intentionally designed to appeal to urban voters in Toronto and Ottawa.
This strategy might win elections, but it has done little to address Ontario’s long-term economic decline.
The Legacy of Trudeau and Wynne: A Tax Burden Too Heavy to Bear
Let’s not forget that before Doug Ford ever took office, the province was already under strain. The combination of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and former Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne created a tax-heavy environment that drove small and medium-sized businesses out of the province. The manufacturing base, once a cornerstone of Ontario’s economy, began to erode under the weight of excessive regulation, high union wages, and energy costs.
Doug Ford’s campaign message—focused on “Jobs”—resonated with voters who were desperate for relief.
But even after Ford’s election, the exodus of businesses continued. Was this entirely his fault? Not quite.
Doug Ford’s Dilemma: Caught Between Voters and Ottawa
Critics on the right, particularly outlets like Rebel News, continue to attack Doug Ford for being too soft, too cooperative with federal figures like Mark Carney. But here’s a hard truth: Ford governs a province where Ottawa—the federal capital—is located. He cannot afford open hostility with the federal government when many of his voters expect diplomacy, not conflict.
Many Conservatives demand austerity, and rightly so. But it’s important to remember that Doug Ford inherited a system being actively undermined by Ottawa’s environmental regulations and Trudeau’s carbon taxes. Ford has attempted to shrink the size of Ontario’s provincial government, but each new federal policy, especially on climate, comes with new burdens on businesses—burdens that the province must then spend tax dollars trying to offset.
The Real Culprit: Carbon Taxes and Regulatory Overload
What’s fueling Ontario’s debt today is not merely overspending at Queen’s Park—it’s a federal obsession with changing the weather through taxation. Canada’s industrial carbon tax, combined with layer upon layer of environmental and business regulations, has made it nearly impossible for companies to operate profitably in Ontario.
We are taxing our own industries out of existence, while using public funds to patch over the damage—an endless cycle of economic mismanagement that guarantees more debt, more bureaucracy, and less prosperity.
Economic Illiteracy Among Voters
Let’s be clear: Ontario’s economic crisis is a result of voter decisions. Time and time again, the electorate has chosen policies that make life more expensive, less productive, and more centralized.
Many Ontarians genuinely believe the government can tax us into better weather, regulate us into prosperity, and legislate innovation. This economic delusion, combined with an increasing hostility toward austerity, has created the bloated, inefficient, debt-ridden province we live in today.
The Role of Labour Unions in Ontario’s Decline
Ontario was once Canada’s manufacturing heartland. That changed when labour unions pushed for unsustainable wage structures, often under slogans like: “If you can’t afford a union wage, you don’t deserve to be in business.”
These slogans may sound noble, but in practice they chased away investment, forced plant closures, and shifted production to more business-friendly regions. When those same voices now try to “fix” the economy using the same tactics that helped destroy it, it’s no wonder progress is impossible.
Ontario Isn’t Alberta
One must also consider that Ontario’s demographics differ sharply from other provinces. Most immigrants arrive in Ontario first. If they can’t find work here, they leave. This churn creates a different set of economic and political challenges than those faced in provinces like Alberta, where resource industries and employment are more stable.
What works in Alberta won’t necessarily work in Ontario—and vice versa.
Why Austerity Is the Only Way Forward
Unless Ontario returns to fiscal sanity, the debt crisis will worsen. But meaningful austerity will only be possible if federal overreach stops, and if voters begin demanding less government intervention—not more.
Right now, Doug Ford is doing a delicate balancing act: trying to maintain basic services, shrink government spending, and deal with a hostile federal administration that continues to pass new mandates, taxes, and compliance costs onto provinces—without offering any real support.
If federal regulation and taxation were drastically reduced and Ford still failed to balance the budget, then criticism would be warranted. But until that happens, it’s not fair to place the entire blame on his administration.
The Spiritual Dimension: Replacing God With Government
The deeper issue here is spiritual, not just economic. Many Canadians now look to government to solve every problem, rather than turning to God and personal responsibility. We imagine that the same institutions that caused these crises can somehow fix them. But that’s not how real change happens.
As we often say on this blog: Only Jesus Christ can truly solve human problems. He doesn’t come to extort us, deceive us, or coerce us. He offers truth, friendship, and transformation. He doesn’t replace greed with more greed, as unions often do when they demand more while ignoring the long-term consequences.
The Christian model calls for personal accountability, honesty in labor, and humility in leadership. These are qualities our political and economic systems are sorely lacking.
Final Word
Ontario’s crisis is not just about Doug Ford. It’s about voters who continue to elect leaders who promise everything, deliver nothing, and fund it all through taxes and debt. It’s about a federal government that punishes productivity in the name of climate virtue-signaling. And it’s about a culture that increasingly trusts the state more than the Savior.
If Canada is ever going to change, it must start with the heart.
Consider making Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior today.
Only through Him can we find the wisdom, courage, and truth to fix the mess we’ve made.
