The McGuinty Minister responsible for autism appears to be “part of the problem rather than the solution” to growing waiting lists, NDP Children and Youth Services Critic, MPP Andrea Horwath, says.

NDP MPPs France Gélinas (Nickel Belt) and Rosario Marchese (Trinity-Spadina) today introduced the NDP’s Communities at Play program – an initiative that would provide $75 million annually to municipalities and local organizations to help with the costs of operating sports and recreation programs and improving facilities.

NDP MPP Michael Prue is calling on the McGuinty government to overhaul a “shockingly” broken youth addictions system by replacing it with a 5-point plan developed by an advocacy group.

“With only 38 beds in Ontario for youth addiction patients, families are left to their own devices in a situation where community support is vital. A lack of beds leads many parents to fund these costs out of pocket, creating a two-tier system,” said Prue.

NDP Leader Howard Hampton today supported calls made by the province-wide “25-in-5” Coalition for real, immediate action from the McGuinty government to reduce poverty.

“The McGuinty government can take immediate steps to reduce poverty, but it needs the political will to do it. That will has been sadly lacking for the last five years,” said Hampton.

NDP Critic for Children and Youth Services, Andrea Horwath, slammed the McGuinty government’s refusal to officially recognize the first ever United Nations World Autism Awareness Day.

The MPP for Hamilton Centre said she was stunned when Liberals denied her request for a formal observation of the historic day in the Ontario Legislature. Horwath wanted each party to have five minutes to publicly address the issue of autism, but was rebuffed.

NDP Leader Howard Hampton today condemned Dalton McGuinty for conceding his failure in the war on poverty on the same day a report shows Ontario has become the child poverty capital of Canada.

“Today’s Campaign 2000 report is a stinging indictment of the McGuinty Liberals’ failure to act on child poverty,” said Hampton. “345,000 children in Ontario don’t have enough to eat, clothes to keep them warm and a safe place to sleep. In response, Dalton McGuinty throws up his hands and said: ‘Ask yourselves, how long has poverty been around for? I think it’s been around for quite a while. We’re not going to get rid of it within a four year mandate.’” (Premier McGuinty Cabinet Scrum, April 2nd 2008).