Climate, Jobs, Justice: The Green New Democratic Deal
The reality of climate change is already here. Ontarians need to know that our children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy the clean air, drinking water, and beautiful natural spaces of previous generations. All Ontarians deserve a prosperous, healthy future.
The Del Duca Liberals failed to take action to lower emissions and protect Ontarians from the consequences of the climate crisis, while Doug Ford has attacked Ontario’s wetlands, floodplains, and green spaces as favours to his developer buddies.
The Ontario NDP has a bold and practical plan to address the urgency of the climate crisis while at the same time revitalizing our economy, protecting workers, and creating millions of good, well-paying jobs for Ontarians.
Our Green New Democratic Deal will fix what previous governments broke while leaving no one in Ontario behind.
GETTING ONTARIO TO NET ZERO
Scientists are clear that we must limit global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid the consequences of catastrophic climate change. To avoid this, Ontario must do its part to dramatically reduce global GHG emissions.
COMMITMENT
Plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2050:We’ll reduce Ontario’s GHG emissions by at least 50 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, targets consistent withmthe Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the most ambitious aspects of the Paris Agreement. We’ll enshrine our GHG reduction targets into law and use a carbon budgeting process to ensure we reach them, consulting with climate scientists, workers, industry and other experts.
CARBON PRICING
Carbon pricing is an important tool to fight climate change.
Liberal and Conservative governments have failed to implement a carbon pricing model that actually works for Ontarians.
The Ontario NDP has a detailed plan to ensure corporate polluters, not regular Ontarians, pay for emissions.
Some key elements of that plan include:
COMMITMENT
New cap-and-trade system that makes big corporate polluters pay for their emissions, ensuring hard-working Ontarians in rural areas and in the trades and industrial sectors are not unfairly penalized.
COMMITMENT
Ensure at least 25 per cent of cap-and-trade revenue goes to supports for rural, Northern, and low-income familiesdisproportionately impacted by carbon pricing.
SUPPORTING FAMILIES
Action on the climate crisis should not come at the cost of jobs, or an affordable life, for everyday Ontarians.
An Ontario NDP government will ensure Ontarians living in rural and Northern areas, or those in traditional industrial trades, aren’t left behind as we transition to a cleaner economy.
COMMITMENT
Create about one million jobs over the lifetime of the plan: We’ll ensure our transition to a net-zero economy creates over a million good jobs in Ontario, with salaries people can raise a family on. We’ll partner with labour and industry to ensure anyone who wants to learn a skilled trade – no matter at what stage of their career – gets the education, training and job placement they need. We’ll focus on recruiting and training people from marginalized communities, and those typically excluded from skilled trades, including women, racialized people, and Indigenous Peoples.
COMMITMENT
Invest a share of cap-and-trade revenue in technology to help trade-exposed industries compete and adapt.
CONSERVATION
Making buildings more energy efficient and conserving energy are proven ways to reduce emissions while saving Ontarians money.
The Liberals drove up the cost of electricity. Doug Ford broke his promise to Ontarians to lower hydro prices and slashed renewable energy projects.
COMMITMENT
Create an ambitious building retrofit program with the goal of retrofitting at least five per cent of Ontario buildings per year to meet international energy efficiency standards.
PARKS AND THE GREENBELT
Ontario’s forests, parks, farmlands, and wetlands are precious to Ontarians, and a vital habitat for plants and animals.
Doug Ford has made multiple attempts to pave over the Greenbelt. He cut the authority of Conservation Authorities, cancelled a program to plant 50 million trees in Ontario, and passed laws to override environmental protections and public input as favours to his developer buddies.
An Ontario NDP government will work with farmers, Indigenous Peoples, and rural Ontarians to protect our natural spaces.
COMMITMENT
Expand the Greenbeltto include vital green spaces like the Carruthers Creek Headwaters.
COMMITMENT
Expand access to parks and green spaces across Ontario, while increasing protection of ecosystems and biodiversity.
COMMITMENT
Create a Youth Climate Corps: We’ll give young Ontarians the opportunity to get hands-on skills and experience restoring and enhancing Ontario’s natural landscape, while earning a fair wage, and a fee credit towards post-secondary education.
COMMITMENT
Plant one billion trees by 2030 to help Ontario achieve our net-zero targets.
WATER PROTECTION
Clean water is a basic human right.
Liberal and Conservative governments have failed to deliver clean drinking water to Indigenous communities – multiple First Nation communities in Ontario have lived under boil water advisories for decades. Liberals and Conservatives have let bottled water operations put Ontario’s water supply at risk.
An Ontario NDP government will never put the interests of companies over Ontarians’ needs. We’ll make sure everyone in Ontario has access to clean drinking water and clean water for sanitation and growing food.
COMMITMENT
Provincial Water Strategy:We’ll launch a provincial water strategy based on the principle that decisions about water must be based on public interest, and guarantee public access to sustainable water sources.
COMMITMENT
End drinking water advisories: We will ensure source water protection plans are implemented so everyone has access to reliable, safe drinking water, to put an end to drinking advisories for good.
COMMITMENT
Review all water-taking permits:We’ll launch a transparent, public review of the Permit-To-Take- Water process, especially for bottled water, to protect public use and good watershed management.
CUTTING WASTE
Ontarians are working to cut down on waste produced at home, while the waste produced by large companies fills up our landfills and pollutes our water and air.
Liberal and Conservative governments have failed to make big corporations pay for their pollution. An Ontario NDP government will fix this.
COMMITMENT
Working closely with municipalities, industry and Stewardship Ontario, we’ll improve and expand the producer-responsibility model of waste diversion to include more sectors and set higher recycling targets.
COMMITMENT
Ban non-medical single-use plastics by 2024: We’ll enshrine this in provincial legislation.
COMMITMENT
Expand recycling and composting services:We’ll work with municipalities to improve recycling and composting service delivery everywhere in Ontario.
CLIMATE RESILIENCE
Ontarians are already experiencing the effects of climate change.
Wildfires burned more hectares of land in Ontario in 2021 than ever before, forcing thousands across northwestern Ontario to evacuate their homes. Communities across the province have seen record levels of rainfall and flooding, causing devastating damage to their homes and businesses.
Liberal and Conservative governments have refused to take urgent action on the climate crisis. Doug Ford carelessly cut funding for flood management programs in half.
The Ontario NDP has a plan to protect what matters most and ensure communities provincewide are resilient to the impacts of climate change, with economic opportunities that leave no one behind.
COMMITMENT
Implement a climate stress test on all provincial infrastructure, applied to all existing and planned provincial infrastructure, to make sure our communities are prepared. We’ll make repairs and upgrades where needed.
COMMITMENT
Provincial action plan on flooding: Working with groups like the Insurance Bureau of Canada, our plan will invest in flood defences, support people moving off floodplains, make sure Ontarians have access to affordable flood insurance, and mandate flood risk disclosure in real estate listings.
FIRES AND FOREST MANAGEMENT
Robust forests and good forest management reduce emissions, protect our wildlife and soil, and prevent devastating forest fires.
Doug Ford cancelled a program to plant 50 million trees in Ontario.
An Ontario NDP government will guarantee our forests are well managed and protected for a clean, climate- resilient future.
COMMITMENT
Invest in forest fire prevention and plant a billion trees by 2030: Our forest management programs will include expanding Indigenous-managed lands, supporting Ontario’s hardworking fire rangers with training and equipment, and sharing Ontario’s wildland fire management expertise with other jurisdictions.
Our plan
Making Life More Affordable
Fixing our Health Care system
Fixing home care and long-term care, and helping Ontarians age in place
Good jobs that pay the bills
Fixing Education and Schools
Climate, Jobs, Justice: The Green New Democratic Deal
Honouring the Inherent Rights, Treaties, and Ways of Life of Indigenous Peoples
Equity
Fixing Ontario's social safety net, and ensuring people with disabilities live a great life
Quality public services you can count on
Strengthening our Democracy
Fiscal approach
Recovering From COVID-19
Northern Ontario Platform
