Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak insists he has no regrets about retreating from his controversial “right-to-work” proposal despite polling that suggests his idea had merit.

“The answer is no,” Hudak said Thursday when asked if there were any second thoughts about the flip-flop.

“I’ve made my decision and it didn’t make the cut,” the Tory chief said firmly at a Queen’s Park news conference to promote his “million jobs plan” to boost employment.

“Look, I’ve made my decision about what’s in our jobs plan and what isn’t. So what’s in our jobs plan? Actually getting taxes down for all businesses so they’ll create jobs in our province again,” he said.

“Making sure energy is affordable, and peeling back this red-tape burden that makes a lot of business owners — particularly small business — say ‘why do I bother?’”

Hudak’s comments came after a Forum Research poll Thursday in the Star on his decision to cancel the Tories’ “right-to-work” pledge to scrap the Rand Formula requiring employees in a unionized workplace to pay dues even if they choose not to join the union.

Forum found 62 per cent of those surveyed disapprove of the Rand Formula while 24 per cent approve of it and 13 per cent don’t know.

The poll also suggested 42 per cent support “right-to-work” laws while 40 per cent oppose them and 18 per cent are undecided.

Similarly, opinions were divided on Hudak’s policy U-turn last Friday — 39 per cent back his move while 31 per cent disagree with it and 31 per cent are uncertain.

Using interactive voice-response phone calls, Forum surveyed 1,014 people across Ontario on Tuesday and results are considered accurate to within three percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

Forum president Lorne Bozinoff said Hudak was clearly “spooked” by a narrow loss in the Feb. 13 Niagara Falls byelection where unions rallied against the Tories’ labour reforms, which led to an NDP win.

But internally the policy was problematic with MPPs and party activists concerned it would cause the Conservatives more harm than good in a provincial election that could come this spring.

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