NDP Leader Howard Hampton said Ontarians can count on New Democrats to continue fighting for good-paying jobs while Dalton McGuinty dithers on the economy.

“Ontario's working families want to keep their good jobs, not go on welfare. They want to work hard and provide for their families, not fall deeper into poverty. They want government investment, not corporate tax cuts. And they want a Premier who shows leadership for a change," Hampton said.

Hampton grilled the McGuinty government on the first day of the spring legislative session on its gross mismanagement of the economic crisis. As General Motors (GM) and Chrysler prepare to submit their restructuring plans to American lawmakers, GM workers in Ontario are wondering if any of their jobs are secure.

"Dalton McGuinty has repeatedly proven that he has failed to take adequate measures to weather this economic storm. It is the McGuinty government’s sheer incompetence on an auto-bailout plan that leaves us with the real possibility that GM could pull out of Ontario altogether,” said Hampton.

Hampton said he and the rest of the NDP caucus will continue to stand up for working families during these tough economic times.

That includes promoting the NDP’s five-point jobs stimulus plan. The plans calls for
funding of shovel-ready municipal infrastructure projects, introducing a manufacturing investment tax credit, creating a “Buy Ontario” program for all government purchasing, implementing an industrial hydro rate, and increasing the minimum wage to $10.25 per hour now.

"On these issues and so many more, Ontarians can count on the NDP to stand up for them and fight for real results, not more McGuinty broken promises and empty rhetoric," Hampton said.