A Conservative government would make it easier for Ontarians to own their own homes by giving tax breaks worth up to $500 a year per household, Premier Ernie Eves says.
“Our plan for an income tax break on mortgage interest will actually make home ownership possible for some and more affordable for all,” he told a news conference yesterday morning at a construction site.
Under the scheme, homeowners would be allowed to deduct up to $5,000 in mortgage interest payments from their taxable income. That would translate into(转化为，这是英文媒体中经常遇到的词组) income tax savings of up to $500 annually. The plan would be phased in over five years.
If a family with an average-priced house used their tax savings to pay off their mortgage, they could shave two years off a 25-year amortization, Eves said.
“We believe that it is important to help, especially young families out there struggling to make ends meet（达到收支平衡）,” Eves said.
Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty has said the mortgage-interest deductibility scheme is unaffordable and irresponsible given the increasing spending demands on health care, education and the environment.
When Eves returned to his hotel in Kingston, he was greeted by about 15 protesters who waved placards condemning his government for everything from welfare cuts, to jeopardizing medicare, to polluting the environment.
The group has been demonstrating against the Conservative government every Friday for the last 7 1/2years outside Kingston City Hall, noted Sister Pauline Lally of the Sisters of Providence of St. Vincent de Paul.
Another 25 protesters caught up with Eves later in the day as he attended a reception for Barry Gordon, the Tory candidate in Hastings-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington.
Inside, Eves continued his crusade against McGuinty.
“Mr. McGuinty and the Liberal party have been against virtually every single one of the 225 tax decreases that our government has introduced in the last eight years in the province of Ontario,” Eves said.
He boasted that his government has restored economic vitality to the province, noting the tax cuts have allowed Ontarians to keep $16 billion more of their own money.
As well, 1 million more people are working today than in 1995 and there are 620,000 fewer people getting welfare, he said.
Ontario was in a sorry state when the Conservatives assumed power in 1995, Eves said, noting that the deficit then stood at $11.3billion.
But opposition politicians and bank economists say the province is now in worse shape than Eves is letting on. While Eves maintains the budget is balanced this year, they contend the province faces a deficit of at least $2 billion.
