(January 7, 2015) From the auditor general’s report to the sale of Hydro One to conservation — has the Liberal government delivered the most efficient and affordable power for the province? The Consumer Policy Institute’s Brady Yauch joins The Agenda to discuss.
Click on the image to view the discussion in full.
Broadcast by TVO on January 7. Featured panelists include: Brady Yauch, an economist with the Consumer Policy Institute, the Toronto Star’s Martin Regg Cohn and lawyer Lisa DeMarco.
Key points – Brady Yauch:
Electricity bills in Ontario are rising faster than inflation.
The way we plan for energy in Ontario is broken. Independent critics are being silenced and the government has gone ahead with its policies regardless of advice to the contrary.
The wholesale electricity market is distorted because the government has spent 10 years circumnavigating the market.
On the plus side, Ontario in 2015 used the same level of power as in 1997. But the province’s smart meter program remains problematic: sold on Ontarians for an initial estimate of $1 billion, it has cost $2 billion and counting and is still not fully operational.
Related Reading:
Queen’s Park moves to silence dissent on electricity
Ratepayers on the hook for Hydro
Top 10 takeaways from auditor general’s report on Ontario’s electricity sector
