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Liberals' deficit will hurt taxpayers The Dalton McGuinty Liberals created an artificial $1.4 billion deficit this year that will cost taxpayers $50 million in annual interest charges. On top of that little obligation, taxpayers still have to pay back the original $1.4 billion. Provincial revenues were up almost $3 billion in the last year. Instead of running a balanced budget McGuinty's Liberals spent a whole bunch more money and created a deficit, likely so they can run a balanced budget in 200-- an election year. Can they be that cynical? McGuinty's Liberals have been adding to the total provincial debt annually with unnecessary deficits. They have been saddling your children and grandchildren with the burden of their mismanagement. They have cast a shadow on our economy, threatened higher interest rates and failed utterly to manage the electricity file. And now, they try to pull the wool over our collective eyes by manufacturing a deficit so they can unveil a balanced budget and claim to be good fiscal managers. How dumb do they think we are? In any event, the silver lining in their manufactured deficit is that at least some manufacturing is still going on in Ontario, after Liberal policies have chased more than 80,000 manufacturing jobs from the province. The Liberals are making us pay more taxes but we get less in services. Their massive health tax has done nothing to improve health care or reduce wait times. This year the Liberals have presided over a 20 per cent increase in the number of public employees making $100,000 or more, all the while fashioning a deficit budget to pay for it. The Ministry of Agriculture had an 11 per cent rise in the number of $100,000 employees but the McGuinty Liberals cut their budget by $200 million, another example of their pay more, get less management program. Ontario families are hurting under the Liberal burden of increased taxes and higher energy costs. We are reaching the same kind of breaking point that occurred just before the early 1990s recession burst upon us assisted by former NDP Premier Bob Rae's annual deficits and lack of fundamental understanding of our economy. In the four complete fiscal years prior to the 2003 election, Ontarians enjoyed the benefits of a balanced budget. In the three budgets presented by the Liberals since their election Ontarians and their families have been burdened by deficit spending and additional debt. Is that any way to run a province? --Ted Chudleigh is the MPP for Halton