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In its 2013 long-term energy plan, the Ontario government said it would begin looking at importing electricity from other jurisdictions when such imports “are cost effective for Ontario ratepayers.”





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HDF has been in evidence for some time, but as the election approaches the media are emerging as the Harper government’s biggest political opponent, bigger than the New Democratic or Liberal parties. The Media Party’s distorted handling of recent dribbles of economic data related to recession and deficits sets new records for overblown news creationism.

At The Grope and Flail, where the anti-Harper machine is running full tilt, the page one headline Thursday claimed “Tory pledge to balance budget takes a hit.” The story was based on a Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) forecast that Ottawa could face a $1-billion deficit this fiscal year, thus allegedly breaking Tory commitments. Since the year only just began in April and data are only available for April and May (showing a surplus of $2.1-billion, before special items) it’s a wild forecasting stretch to conclude that Ottawa will show a deficit by the end of next March.

Another headline blasted “The Harper government’s deficit denial” and still another, found on the National Post’s web pages, claimed “Conservatives’ election script clashes with economic reality.” Well, no, it doesn’t, since there is no reality with which to clash or deny. Forecasts are not reality unless you’re in a whipped-up state of pre-election HDF and ready to turn anything into a theme that makes the Harper government look bad.