The Parkdale-Liberty Villager

"This budget, I think, is very good news," said Miller, less than an hour after Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan finished delivering his government's 2008 provincial budget.

The budget, which Duncan delivered in barely concealed defiance of criticism from his federal counterpart Jim Flaherty, provides a major cash infusion on municipal infrastructure including public transit and housing, and more cash for skills training and anti-poverty programs.

Transit in particular is a major recipient.

In Toronto and the GTA, the province will spend $497 million on new transit projects in the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton - the first step toward completing the $17.5 billion MoveOntario 2020 public transit.

Here in Toronto, that confirms earlier promises to fund signal improvements along the Yonge subway line and the start on Toronto's Transit City light rail plan.

The infusion has been long anticipated - the Toronto Transit Commission voted to go ahead with environmental assessments on three light rail projects in Toronto well in advance of the budget.

But Miller praised the transit investment anyway.

"Specifically, this will allow the Toronto Transit Commission to invest in automatic train control on the Yonge line, and it will increase capacity to enable us to build a busway from Finch to Steeles Avenue," said Miller. "Most importantly, in the long run it provides the funding for the environmental assessments for Transit City. This year we are starting the environmental assessments for the Finch West line, the Sheppard East line and the Eglinton line. These are three important components for rapid transit, and this begins funding for that network."

The budget also provides $1 billion for property tax grants to help low and moderate-income seniors stay in their homes, with $250 grants going out this year and $500 grants in 2009.

And it announced a $1.5 billion Skills to Jobs action plan, that will help retrain Ontarians to transition for new, well-paying jobs.

And for business: while Finance Minister Dwight Duncan resisted calls from his federal counterpart Jim Flaherty to slash corporate taxes dramatically, he did include tax cuts. Manufacturers will see Capital Tax eliminated retroactive to Jan. 1, 2007 to the tune of $190 million in rebates as a part of the $750 million business tax relief plan.

The Toronto Board of Trade applauded the priorities outlined in the budget. President and CEO Carol Wilding said the multi-pronged approach of some tax relief, skills training and infrastructure improvement will help the city's business community.

"There's elements of good news for Toronto's business community in there, particularly around infrastructure and investment in skills and training," she said. "Infrastructure we know is an issue for the business community. You have to move goods and people around and of a billion dollars, half is earmarked for Toronto and the GTA. And on the skills piece, we are seeing a transition from a manufacturing economy to a knowledge-based economy, so a number of people will need to be retrained, and $1.5 billion invested in that is a critical piece."

As for tax relief?

"There's some relief there," said Wilding. "Lower taxes are an important tool, but they are one tool. Investments in infrastructure are important."