No apology from premier for higher cost of cancelled gas plant
by The Canadian Press
Kathleen Wynne says she has already accepted responsibility for "political decision"
TORONTO—Premier Kathleen Wynne refuses to apologize for low-balling the $275-million cost of the Ontario government’s decision to pull the plug on a gas plant in Mississauga by $85 million.
Wynne says she accepted responsibility for what she admits was a political decision by the Liberals to cancel the Mississauga gas plant in mid-construction, just days before the October 2011 election.
However, even though she was Liberal campaign co-chair at the time, Wynne declined repeated requests to say sorry for the higher-than-expected price tag of the cancellation, which was confirmed by the auditor general.
Wynne said she regrets that the government didn’t make the decision to cancel the gas plant earlier, and would do a better job of locating energy projects in the future.
The Progressive Conservatives accuse Wynne of intentionally downplaying the true cost of scrapping the Mississauga project and another gas plant they cancelled in Oakville in 2010.
The Liberals have said the Oakville decision will cost $40 million, and Wynne said today she won’t update that figure until the auditor issues his report into that cancelled project in August or September.
