The Liberal candidate in Nipissing is countering remarks made by Tory incumbent Vic Fedeli involving the former Arclin plant.
Fedeli claims the Liberals’ high energy policies forced the plant to close in 2014.
However Liberal hopeful Stephen Glass says the public gets a different version after reading a 2014 news article detailing why the plant closed.
Glass says nowhere in the article does the company’s senior vice president cite high electricity costs as a factor to close the plant.
Glass says there are several reasons why the plant relocated to the southeastern United States including expensive costs to transport the company’s products beyond a 300 kilometre range.
He adds other reasons were cheaper fuel and labour costs in the U.S.
“You would think that if electrical costs had been a leading factor, it would have been mentioned rather than the other half dozen other (reasons) that the company mentioned at the time,” Glass said.
Glass believes Fedeli is using the electricity argument as a way to distract voters that the Tories haven`t costed out their promises.
For example, although the Tories claim to be able to drop hydro costs by 12 per cent, Glass has his doubts on the method of execution.
“They say they’ll take the $800-million dividends from Hydro One and send it to the ratepayers,” Glass said.
However Glass points out the $800-million is already allocated for areas like health and education.
“So either he has to lay off $800-million worth of public sector workers or he has to borrow the money on the backs of our children in order to keep those services,” Glass said.
The Liberal hopeful adds if the Tories borrow money to achieve their hydro cut, then they are no different than past parties of all political stripes which have essentially done the same thing when it comes to subsidizing hydro.
