Premier Doug Ford’s incentive to sell alcohol in Ontario’s convenience stores will cost the province a total of $1.4 billion by 2030, according to a report by the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario (FAO).
Of that figure, $612 million is how much it cost the public to accelerate the program, ensuring booze was always within arm’s reach by December 2024.
“It is outrageous that at a time when Doug Ford is withholding billions of health-care funding dollars, he is wasting $612 million to speed up the expansion of alcohol sales,” said the Ontario Nurses Association (ONA), Canada’s largest nurses’ union, in an email statement in response to questions from Humber Et Cetera.
The ONA said it would rather the money be spent on Ontario’s healthcare system.
Ford is running again for premier in the upcoming provincial election, seeking a stronger mandate than he has now, but some Ontarians will want to see a change in spending habits.
“This is just the latest of many reckless decisions Ford has made. This will drain our public coffers of funds that should be going to improve our public services, including our healthcare system,” the ONA said.
“This money could be spent to improve staffing in hospitals, ensuring fewer emergency closures and service cuts, especially in smaller communities that have been hurt by lack of nurse and health staffing. It could also help improve funding in primary or community care, ensuring wages are equal to other sectors so they can retain staff and ensure Ontarians can access care when and where they need it,” they said.
The Progressive Conservatives initially said accelerating the plan would cost taxpayers at least $225 million, money to put beer and wine on the shelves of Circle K and other stores 16 months ahead of schedule.
Since then the cost has nearly tripled, and Ontario’s Liberal Party said they’d also rather spend that figure on Ontario healthcare.
“The Ontario Liberals would use that money to hire 1,400 more family doctors instead,” a spokesperson for Bonnie Crombie said in an email statement.
“We have 2.5 million people without a family doctor in this province and 3 million people who will soon lose their family doctor to retirement. We need to be investing in our healthcare system,” they said.
Healthcare investment is a hot topic in the upcoming provincial election.
The Ontario NDP last week promised to implement a healthcare plan to recruit thousands of healthcare doctors for Ontario families.
“After seven years of Doug Ford, 2.5 million people have no family doctor and can’t get one. Adding to the failures of the Liberals who invented hallway healthcare, Ford has made it harder than ever for families to see a doctor and get the care they need,” Ontario New Democrat leader Marit Stiles said.
“Every day this crisis deepens. It’s time to do something about it,” she said.
A report from Ontario Quality Ontario said that 34.7 per cent of individuals in Ontario can see their healthcare provider the same day or the next day following sickness or injury.
The data is from the 2023 Health Care Experience Survey and was recorded from April to December.
