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2 News Record • Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Contributed photo
Patti Kellar from St. Joseph expresses her concern regarding hydro costs.
Hydro One protesters
have had enough
"You are forcing them to choose between heating
their homes or putting food on the table."
Lynda Hillman-Rapley
Postmedia Network
As the Ontario government gets
set to plant a "for -sale" at publicly -
owned Hydro One, the front lawn of
Queen's Park sprouted protesters last
Wednesday.
It drew a mixed crowd of people
concerned about a number of
hydro issues including what the
sell-off of a majority stake in Hydro
One might mean for the province
and electricity prices, and also the
impact of wind turbines on rural
communities and bills.
The bottom line was a fear that
electricity would become increas-
ingly unaffordable.
":..Hundreds gathered outside
Queen's Park to express their frus-
tration with the Liberal govern-
ment's unaffordable hydro rates,"
said Huron Bruce MPP Lisa
Thompson. People came from
across the province, including
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Huron -Bruce to tell the govern-
ment that enough is enough:'
Thompson joined by Huron -
Bruce constituents Norma Schmidt
(Tiverton), Patti Kellar (St.Joseph)
and Susan Muller (Crediton) outside
Queen's Park last Wednesday at the
Hydro Rally that attracted hundreds
from across the province. She says
Ontario currently has the highest
hydro rates in Canada.
Muller organized this local trip,
joining other communities
saying,"Hydro One: Enough is
enough." Stop complaining and do
something, says Muller on her social
media site as a prompt for people to
join her at Queens Park to protest the
latest hydro rate increase. She says
the groundswell began in northern
Ontario and social media has seen it
spread across the province. On this
bus were local people from Clinton,
Dashwood, Zurich and Exeter.
Thompson agrees saying, "Since
the Liberals formed the government,
hydro rates have tripled, rising by
$1,000 per year for the average
homeowner. If you don't qualify for
the low-income supplement, your
hydro bill increased another $205
per year starting as of May 1st," she
says adding, "This government has
put Ontarians in a situation where
they are choosing between heating
or eating. The Liberals failed Green
Energy Act and disastrous energy
policies have led to the most expen-
sive electricity in the country, it is
unacceptable:'
Just home from the rally, Kellar
said there were stories from all walks,
"small business owners, cottages not
lived in where property owners were
charged 49 cents for electricity and
over $25 in distribution costs"
Kellar's sign read 'Monuments to
Stupidity Under Construction: "I
believe most of those present were
well aware the situation in rural
Ontario. They realize it is costing us
more for energy that we can no
longer afford and Industrial Wind
Turbines protected by the flawed
Green Energy and Economy Act of
2009 are a large part of that cost!' She
said she felt, at this rally, that she was
"preaching to the converted."
The gathering was addressed by
key speakers including new Ontario
PC leader Patrick Brown, and Andrea
Horwath of the NDP. Kellar told
Postmedia Network there were a lot
of Conservative and NDP members
present. "NDP (members) were
booed by many for there lack of
understanding of the impact of the
Green Energy Act on Rural Ontario.
No Liberals came out despite being
asked to in Question Period. She
explained there were many speakers
including MPPs Jack MacLaren,
Randy Hillier, Vic Fedelli, Lisa
Thompson, Parker Gallant, as well as
speakers for Wind Concerns Ontario,
the organizers of the event.
Kellar said some of the stories
could have been anyone from any
town, "People who were impacted
severely by their hydro bills, a single
mother of five who was working two
jobs and staying up to do her laundry
at 4 am and determining her kids
shower time before 6 am. The mes-
sage for many was Heat or Eat."
"There was no where near the
amount of people who showed up
for the sex ed curriculum," she said
referring to the concerns from
Ontario parents who do not want
their children taught sex education at
school. "I guess because Toronto
really doesn't care. After all, they
have Toronto Hydro. Which I sus-
pect is no where as mismanaged as
Ontario Hydro. Over $10,000 com-
plaints to the Ombudsman and ris-
ing. We just can't make this stuff up"
Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli:
"Certainly, hydro rates are a very top-
ical issue. We understand that the
investments we made to take a dirty
and unreliable system and make it
clean and reliable are putting pres-
sures on Ontario families, particu-
larly electric heat in rural areas. But
to help families with their energy
bills, we announced further price
mitigation measures in our budget ...
removing the debt retirement charge
by the end of this year ... saving the
average family $70 per year on their
hydro bills, and the ... Ontario Elec-
tricity Support Program for low- and
modest -income families ... There
were blackouts and brownouts
across the province of Ontario under
(the Progressive Conservative)
administration!'
PC MPP and energy critic John
Yakabuski: "People are here today to
tell you that they cannot afford
energy at 16.1 cents kWh — or what
you dismissively call 'a cup of coffee:
You are forcing them to choose
between heating their homes or put-
ting food on the table."
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath: The
NDP have put up a website — you-
paytheprice.ca — for all those
opposed to the Hydro One sale,
which she predicts will force up
hydro prices. "There you can contact
your MPP, you can contact Kathleen
Wynne, you can download a peti-
tion, you can download literature
that you can share with your friends
and neighbours!'