Steve Ladurantaye

Andrea Horwath may be the leader of Ontario’s traditional party of labour, but she is steering it toward the middle ground, the turf currently occupied by the Liberals.

This shift could leave Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty feeling squeezed from both the left and the right, because Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak has already essentially adopted all of his main rival’s health-care and education policies.

Read the story with Karen Howlett at the Globe and Mail

“Our platform has ideas borrowed from all kinds of different places. …,” Ms. Horwath told The Globe and Mail’s editorial board on Thursday. “We have to be practical and borrow from ideas in other places, regardless of what the ideology is.”

Ms. Horwath, who took the helm in 2009, is essentially refashioning the NDP in her own image, just as its fortunes are on the rise. Her platform contains wallet relief in a bid to reach beyond the party’s base, but very little on core principles such as the environment and social justice. With one week before voting day, the Liberals and Progressive Conservatives are running neck and neck with the NDP a competitive third.

Ms. Horwath is a threat to Mr. McGuinty because her party could siphon off Liberal votes – something Mr. Hudak hopes will happen. She is well-aware that she could play a pivotal role if Ontario elects its first minority government since the mid-1980s, but she said it is premature to talk about forming a coalition.

“I’m not in a position to pick a premier yet,” Ms. Horwath said. “Maybe I’m still in a position to be a premier, and that’s how I’m going to fight the last week of the campaign.”

Ms. Horwath has had to deal with the legacy of two former NDP leaders on the campaign trail. She has engaged in a delicate balance of using the goodwill over Jack Layton’s death to fuel her party’s momentum and trying to get out from under the federal NDP leader’s shadow.

And then there are the reminders of an unhappy chapter in her party’s history: Bob Rae’s term as premier in the early 1990s. He is now interim leader of the federal Liberals. People need to get over the Rae era and stop harkening back to it, Ms. Horwath said. As for her friend Mr. Layton, “he’s a big part of our DNA.”

Asked if she was dealing with two ghosts, the woman who is not known for mincing words joked, “I guess Bob’s not really a ghost if he’s still alive.” Perhaps, she added, he’s a “skeleton.”

For his part, Mr. McGuinty is campaigning as the only leader with the vision to manage the economy in difficult times. That vision includes making Ontario a leader in North America in the fledgling clean-energy sector, using that to spur job creation much the way the auto industry did in previous generations.

“I see an opening,” said Mr. McGuinty, who met with The Globe’s editorial board on Wednesday. “I see an opportunity and I want to drive hard. It’s a place for us to make our mark.”

As his opponents position themselves for a final sprint to election day, Mr. Hudak appears more energized on the campaign trail since his performance during this week’s televised leaders debate.

Mr. Hudak’s campaign took on a positive tone Thursday as he slammed a slew of last-minute announcements by the Liberals.

He also took aim at the NDP, saying, “they’re going to raise taxes just like the Liberals, but at least they have the courtesy to say so.”

He said the Liberal announcements – including stopping work at a gas-fired power plant in Mississauga and moving up the start date for a home renovation tax credit for seniors by 15 months – were signs of panic. At this stage in the campaign, he said, it’s too late to be introducing or enhancing platform planks.

“We’re seven days out and Dalton McGuinty has some brand-new, last-minute, panicked jobs plan,” he said. “Give me a break – you can’t make this stuff up on the fly. We have a plan, and we’re sticking to it.”

A Liberal plan to speed up the implementation of a tax credit for seniors in a bid to kick-start the job market is a panicked last minute move that shows desperation, Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak charged Thursday as he vowed not to veer from his platform in coming days.

But the Liberals said the move isn’t that dramatic – they are simply implementing the program sooner than expected because the economy is in need of some help.

Read the story in the Globe and Mail

They Liberals said Thursday they would move the eligibility date for a proposed tax credit forward so seniors can fix their homes to make them easier to live in. The new date for the credit – which is worth up to $1,500 – is now Oct. 1 instead of January 2013.

Moving the program forward is expected to cost them $150-million.

The program is contingent on re-election, so anyone who took advantage of the program in its early days would be risking absorbing the full cost of their renovations if anther party won.

After speaking at an Ottawa Chamber of Commerce breakfast, Mr. Hudak said it’s too late to start introducing or enhancing platform planks.

“We’re seven days out and Dalton McGuinty has some brand-new, last-minute panicked jobs plan,” he said. “Give me a break – you can’t make this stuff up on the fly. We have a plan, and we’re sticking to it.”

Mr. Hudak focused on jobs in his morning speech, sticking to the five themes he’s emphasized through the campaign: energy costs, overhauling the apprenticeship system, reducing taxes for employers, eliminating red tape and reducing taxes for families so they have more money to spend.

“Dalton McGuinty’s so-called jobs plan has been tried,” he said. “It has failed. It’s not working. You can’t subsidize your way to better jobs. You can’t tax your way to prosperity. You can’t spend your way out of debt. And you can’t divide your way to a better future for all.”

The Liberal announcement of the early roll-out came the day after Mr. McGuinty said he’d spend this week focusing on the economy and job creation. The party, he said, has been watching economic developments in Europe and the U.S.

“We’re acting in a responsible manner, both in terms of what needs to be done and acting within the framework of our own fiscal plan,” Mr. McGuinty said.

“There’s only one party here that’s got a real, sensible, serious plan to grow this economy and create jobs, that’s us,” he said.

The Liberals said Thursday that the tax credit would generate “immediate demand” for skilled labour and manufacturing. It uses the federal government’s home renovation tax credit program as its model, which has been widely credited for spurring economic activity.

Beyond boosting the economy and creating jobs, the program will help seniors live in their homes longer, reducing costs for hospital and long-term care costs, Mr. McGuinty said.

The Liberal campaign stopped at the home of seniors John and Victoria Vonk, who Mr. McGuinty said are some of the people who could benefit from the credit.

Sitting in their living room with Mr. McGuinty and his wife, the Vonks said they would be interested in making renovations such as putting in a chair lift to help them maneuver their stars and a walk-in bath.

The credit is worth 15 per cent of up to $10,000 in renovations per year. The money will come from the annual $1.7-billion contingency fund set aside in the platform budget.

New lines are being drawn in the Battle of Ontario as the campaign heads into its critical last week, with political leaders fighting to position themselves as the candidate who can stand up to Prime Minister Stephen Harper and win concessions for the province.

Whoever is elected premier will soon end up at a table negotiating a new health accord for the province, and at Tuesday night’s debate Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty told viewers that Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak wasn’t up for the job.

Read the story (with Carys Mills) at the Globe and Mail

He resumed the attack Wednesday morning as he raised the spectre of the so-called “Ontario hat trick” Mr. Harper referred to during a summer backyard barbecue – Conservatives in Ottawa, Rob Ford in Toronto and a Progressive Conservative majority in Queen’s Park.

“Can you imagine Tim Hudak at the table with Stephen Harper negotiating a 10-year health accord?” Mr. McGuinty asked supporters at a rally in Vaughan. “A conservative hat trick may have a nice ring for some people but I think we need to ensure we have a champion for Ontario.”

Mr. Hudak was just down the road as Mr. McGuinty made his speech, and was quick to fight back and position himself as a provincial defender. He used the opportunity to hammer Mr. McGuinty on the $1-billion in losses at eHealth and the unknown cost of moving a Mississauga power plant that has already started to be built.

“I’ll always fight to put Ontario first,” he said. “Dalton McGunity can’t stand up for Ontario any more because he’s loaded down with a billion dollars on his back from eHealth and the whole Mississauga power plant fiasco. How can you go and ask for more money at confederation when you’ve blown so much money on waste?”

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath also chimed in and declared herself the best negotiator for provincial health care funds.

“The question voters need to ask themselves is who do they trust to stick up for a universal, affordable, and accessible public healthcare system,” said Ms.Horwath. “All provincial Premiers will be sitting at the table with Stephen Harper, who has, on multiple occasions, opposed public health care, promoted private options, and downplayed the Federal government’s role in health care.

“Ontario needs a strong voice at the table and Mr. McGuinty and Mr. Hudak’s track record speak for themselves.”

The Harper government has gone out of its way to stay out of the headlines during the provincial election, issuing orders on how best to interact with fellow conservatives on the campaign trail. MPs are encouraged to help local candidates where they can, so long as it doesn’t make them the focus of the news or jeopardize a relationship with whichever party ends up winning.

It’s a fine balance, and MP Dean Del Mastro found himself out of step when he commissioned his own poll when he felt the Peterborough PC candidate was being underrepresented in a poll done by a local newspaper.

As he apologized, another story came out about Mr. Harper’s chief of staff hosting a fundraiser for a Toronto-area PC candidate.

“During these elections you may be called upon by a provincial candidate to assist them in their election. Please keep in mind that we do not want the federal government to become a story in any of these elections,” federal Conservatives were told in a memo. It added that any participation must be done in a way “that does not impair our ability to maintain appropriate federal-provincial relations and does not bring the federal government into disrepute.”

The province’s prison guards welcome a plan to force inmates to do manual labour in the community to earn credit for prison perks, Tim Hudak said Wednesday.

At a campaign stop at a plastic manufacturer, the Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader used Gracious Living employees who work “40-hour weeks before going home to watch TV” as a backdrop to elaborate on his prison-work program that critics are maligning as a “chain gang” initiative.

Read the story in the Globe and Mail

His plan calls for prisoners in provincial jails to put in up to 40 hours a week doing tasks such as picking up garbage, raking leaves and cleaning graffiti. In exchange, they would get credits for things such as television viewing, coffee and gym time depending on the type of work performed and the number of hours worked.

“Provincial guards like this idea,” he said. “We’re just asking the prisoners to do what every other hard-working Ontarian does – an honest day’s work instead of spending the day working out to become better criminals.”

The campaign said Tuesday that the program would be “revenue neutral,” but that they would set aside $20-million of the corrections budget in case it’s needed.

“Depending on what manual labour projects are undertaken this program could deliver cost savings to Ontario taxpayers,” the campaign material states. “Work that is currently paid for with taxpayer dollars that others do not want to do (raking leaves, cutting grass, picking up trash, doing laundry), when done by inmates, would free up taxpayer dollars to be spent on priorities like front-line health care.”

The Conservatives listed a string of perks that prisoners currently enjoy, including “yoga classes designed by a zenmaster, interactive writing workshops to express and honour each person’s unique experiences, healthy-cooking-on-a-budget classes to encourage healthy food choices instead of fast food and premium cable television with high-definition channels.”

His opponents have derided the program as ill-conceived, pointing out he hasn’t actually said how the prisoners would be supervised once they leave the prison. Guards are not armed in Ontario, and an initiative to arm the country’s 4,800 border guards has already cost more than $1-billion.

“Hudak has admitted the prisoners will not in fact be chained,” the Liberal campaign said. “Nor would the guards be armed. In fact, there would be 42 dangerous criminals for every two unarmed guards.”

Mr. Hudak didn’t answer when asked if he intended to arm guards, and said he would need to consult with correctional officers and supervisors to determine the best way to keep prisoners from running off.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s parliamentary secretary has stepped heavily into the Ontario election for the second time, this time commissioning a 1,000-person poll because he felt a local newspaper underplayed the popularity of the local Progressive Conservative candidate.

Peterborough’s Dean Del Mastro – who jumped into the provincial campaign at its outset when he bashed a Liberal plan to provide tax credits to employers to hire immigrants – is back in the spotlight after hiring a polling company to provide a second opinion on a poll published by a local twice-weekly newspaper on Friday.

Read the story in the Globe and Mail

The Peterborough This Week telephone poll suggested Liberal candidate Jeff Leal had a 45.5-per-cent share of the vote compared to 28 per cent for Progressive Conservative candidate Alan Wilson.

“I was deeply concerned that publishing numbers in the fashion as presented on the cover of a weekly large circulation paper could significantly suppress voter participation,” he said. “The methodology was not released and the responses could have just as easily been provided by six-year-olds as registered voters.”

The newspaper’s poll saw 629 people respond via an automated phone poll. Mr. Del Mastro’s poll, meanwhile, has the two in a dead heat at 34 per cent each.

Monday, Mr. Del Mastro publicized the poll on Twitter by saying “my latest media release on poll results,” but then took it down less than an hour later. He said Monday night that he needed to run his own poll because if people think one candidate is running away with it then they may stay away from the polls.

He doesn’t think he’s interfering in local politics. A directive from the Prime Minister’s Office issued in August warns candidates that the “federal government wishes to avoid becoming the story in any of the provincial or territorial elections,” but doesn’t specifically prohibit MP-commissioned polling.

“In provinces where there is only one ‘conservative’ option, we may all make efforts as individuals on private time to assist the election of that option – provided that we comply with this policy,” the memo states.

Mr. Del Mastro said he is motivated by democracy, not partisan politics.

“I dispute that I’m heavily involved in the provincial election, I want people to vote in each and every election,” he said. “When information is published that suggests the election is decided based on flawed methodology it runs contrary to one of my core democratic values which is that people need to exercise their right to vote.”

Using money from the Peterborough Conservative Electoral District Association, he hired Electright to call 1,000 voters Sunday night between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.

The provincial Liberals jumped on the poll, saying that Mr. Del Mastro was acting on behalf of the Prime Minister to run interference in the provincial election.

“This is Harper’s hand-picked parliamentary secretary – his go-to attack dog – and it’s the second time that the Prime Minister has set him loose during the Ontario election,” said Greg Sorbara, a candidate in Vaughan and the campaign co-chairman.

“It is another sign that Harper and the Conservatives are increasingly concerned about Hudak’s disorganized campaign and are prepared to intervene.”

The Prime Minister’s Office had no comment.

Mr. Del Mastro also took advantage of the poll to ask two questions about how residents felt about a few provincial issues. One question was “given that jurisdictions like the United States and Europe have invested billions of dollars trying to create green jobs with disappointing results, do you believe that the 7 billion dollar Samsung deal will create 16,000 jobs in Ontario?”

Half said no, a quarter was undecided, a quarter said yes.

His last question was “given that families and seniors are struggling today in Ontario, do you support eliminating HST from energy bills as well as income splitting for families to reduce their provincial tax burden?”

Seventy-four per cent agreed with the statement.