[BRIEF NOTE] "Ontario may face future as have-not province: McGuinty"

[rfmcdonald]

The CBC has the news.

Ontario could soon become a have-not province, requiring equalization payments, Premier Dalton McGuinty told the Economic Club of Toronto in a Monday morning speech.

With the decline of Ontario's manufacturing industry, combined with higher oil prices, McGuinty said the province may qualify for equalization payments within two years.

Equalization payments are the federal government's way of offsetting differences between the provinces.

None of the four federal parties has included the cost of equalization payments for Ontario in their financial forecasts, but they should, he said.

McGuinty said he has written to party leaders asking for a commitment they won't make any changes that would exclude Ontario from receiving equalization payments.

McGuinty made the speech before going to the legislature where the fall session kicked off Monday. The economy is expected to dominate debate.

While it's worth noting that an Ontario that has traditionally been at the heart of a the Canadian economy is completely without precedent, it's also worth noting that with the exception of an ascendant Alberta, the GDP per capita of the other federal units have been converging towards the Canadian average. Ontario was probably bound to follow the national trend.

Now, if Ontario's relative position continues to deteriorate, I'll be concerned. If it doesn't, and in the meantime, if the equalization payments are needed so what? Silly pride is silly.