‎BARRIE—Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak says he will slash 100,000 public sector jobs, including teachers, scrap “gold-plated” civil service pension plans and cut government spending in order to get Ontario out of the red again.

Saying it is time for “some straight talk.” Hudak delivered his stark message Friday at a campaign stop, drawing immediate reaction from the Liberal, New Democrats and public sector unions.

The job cuts alone, he said, will save $2 billion.

“The hard truth is we can’t spend out way out of this (economic) mess.”

His tough talk was reminiscent of former Tory premier Mike Harris’ government that drastically cut public sectors jobs and government spending.

“It’s not easy. I take no joy in this. But it has to be done,” said Hudak, who has promised to pay down the $11.3 billion deficit.

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He added that he was more than prepared to sacrifice 100,000 public sector jobs — except for nurses, doctors and police — in order to create his million new private sector jobs.

“That’s a trade-off I would do any second,” he told supporters at the Barrie Country Club.

“It will mean fewer teachers and their assistants,” said Hudak, who has said previously he would give 10,000 education assistants their pink slips.

Warren (Smokey) Thomas, president of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, warned his 130,000 members that “it’s your job, it’s your future, it’s your pension” if Hudak is elected to Queen’s Park on June 12.

Thomas said in an email statement that Hudak appears to have taken leave of his senses.

“We’ve known all along that Tim Hudak’s views were extreme, but this is beyond the pale. 100,000 jobs is one-and-a-half per cent of all the jobs in Ontario. Cut that many and you could throw the whole economy into a recession . . . he’s taken leave of his senses,” he said.

“There is no way you can cut those numbers without cutting deep into health care, deep into school boards, deep into colleges and universities. What’s he going to cut? Children’s Aid? Child care? Water testing? If he wants to make those kinds of cuts, he should say where,” he said, noting that former premier Harris only promised to cut 13,000 jobs.

Hudak’s five point plan for trimming costs includes:

An across-the-board two-year wage freeze for every government worker, including MPPs, whose salaries are already frozen, and an end to “gold-plated” public sector pensions.

Shrinking cabinet to 16 ministers from 27.

Reduce spending in all ministries except for health.

Cutting 100,000 public sector jobs.

Privatizing some government services.

The Tories have also promised to abolish the Local Health Integration Networks (LIHNs), and collapse the Ontario Power Authority and Drive Clean Program for testing exhaust emissions.

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In Trenton, Liberal Leader Kathleen Wynne criticized Hudak’s scheme.

“Tim Hudak’s plan is reckless and in fact would steer Ontario out of recovery and back into recession,” Wynne said Friday.

“Tim Hudak’s jobs plan is to turn paycheques into pink slips for 100,000 people.”

“That would mean firing every single person who lives in Quinte West and then firing the city of Belleville, and after that he’d need to find another 7,000 people to reach 100,000 people.”

Wynne said that’s “100,000 people no longer working, no longer paying taxes and buying goods.”

In Windsor, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said Hudak’s plan is a reminder of “when he sat around the cabinet table with Mike Harris.”

“I don’t think anybody in Ontario wants to go backward,” she said after touring an auto parts plant.

“It makes no sense whatsoever,” added Horwath, who charged Hudak wants to “kick more people to the curb.”

Cutting teacher jobs will simply drive up class size and weaken the help available to Ontario’s most needy students, warned Paul Elliott, president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF). He said Hudak’s threat of cuts to the classroom comes just as Ontario has begun to repair the damage caused by cuts under former Premier Mike Harris.

“As we’ve slowly brought back the valuable supports (that) Harris cut, there’s no question they’re linked to the increase we’re seeing in graduation rates and the fall in dropout rates,” said Elliott, whose union is preparing to start negotiating its next teacher contract this fall.

Elliott said Hudak had urged cutting 10,000 support staff jobs from schools two years ago, “and without these valuable supports, the kids at risk who need it most aren’t going to stick around in school.”

Freezes to education spending already have saved Ontario taxpayers $940 million in the past two years, he noted, and cuts to teachers’ sick day benefits by the Liberal government has removed some $1.3 billion in liability off the province’s books.

“What really surprised me today is the number of jobs he’s talking about cutting — at the same time as he talks about creating jobs.

“The thing is, you can remove teachers, but the kids aren’t going to disappear from the classroom. So there just will be fewer staff to deal with them. It’s taking steps backwards.”

Mark McKinnon, president of the Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association, said what Hudak is suggesting is downright scary.

“It’s scary to think that Mr. Hudak wants to cut 100,000 jobs — the population of cities like Niagara Falls and Brantford — and put hard-working, middle-class people out of work while the economy is still fragile just to balance the budget a little faster,” he said.

Ontario fire fighters have not been shy about their support for the Liberals after the Grit government agreed recognize more workplace related diseases.

McKinnon said it is hard to understand why Hudak is prepared to protect other public safety custodians — nurses, doctors, and police officers — but isn’t prepared to do the same for fire fighters who are on call 24 hours a day.

“Laying off fire fighters will reduce capacity to respond quickly to an emergency just when seconds count the most. I believe Tim Hudak is putting public safety at risk in his war against the public sector worker,” McKinnon said.