If he becomes premier, Steven Del Duca would move provincial government agencies and ministries to Northern Ontario and would widen the Trans-Canada Highway to four lanes.

They are two of a series of promises the Ontario Liberal Party leadership candidate included in his Ontario North Action Plan, unveiled Tuesday in Thunder Bay.

Del Duca, a former cabinet minister, also promised to improve health care in Northern Ontario, drive development and electrification in the remote north, and increase the Northern Ontario Energy Credit.

“My Ontario North Action Plan will make it better to live in Sudbury and Northern Ontario,” he said in a release. “What I’ve heard from residents is that they want access to health care, they want to be able to travel safely between communities, they want access to high-speed internet and they want to see the Sudbury economy flourish and grow.

“The Ontario North Plan accomplishes all those things and more. While the provincial government divests from Sudbury, my plan calls for new investments.”

Del Duca said his government would “closely examine whether we can move any ministries or agencies from Toronto to Sudbury. My plan calls for the decentralization of government. It’s a win-win-win because the province can divest from expensive Toronto real estate, invest in the Sudbury economy and workers will have a greater quality of life.”

“Since the PCs took over, we’ve seen cut after cut after cut target Sudbury and Northern Ontario as a whole. It’s time to treat Northerners with respect.”

Former Liberal premier David Peterson moved several government ministries to the North in the 1980s, including the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines to Sudbury.

The idea of such moves is to inject struggling Northern Ontario cities will dozens or hundreds of high-paying civil services jobs.

Six people are running for the Liberal leadership: Del Duca, Michael Coteau, Kate Graham, Brenda Hollingsworth, Mitzie Hunter and Alvin Tedjo.

The Ontario Liberal Party Leadership Committee is hosting the third debate of its 2020 leadership in Sudbury on Sunday. This event will offer each candidate an opportunity to debate their vision for the future of our province and to outline their plan to get there.

The debate will be held 1 to 3 p.m. at the Holiday Inn Sudbury, 1696 Regent St.

Five other debates are planned. Liberals will elect a new leader on March 6-7.

Del Duca’s Ontario North Action Plan calls for:

– Expanding the Trans-Canada Highway to four lanes across its entire length. To meet this ambitious goal, a long-term partnership with the federal government is proposed in which both jurisdictions cover 50 per cent of the cost. “The Trans-Canada Highway is vital infrastructure that ensures residents of Northern Ontario can get to work and home. The initiative will make it easier to get products made in Northern Ontario to market. Expanding the highway will increase safety for those travelling through the North.”

– Ensuring all residents of Northern Ontario have access to a nurse practitioner or doctor within 48 hours when required. This initiative will expand the Northern Ontario School of Medicine’s mandate to include nurse and nurse-practitioner training.

– Making the investment required to build the appropriate electric vehicle charging infrastructure in Northern Ontario.

– Supporting projects that drive development and electrification in the remote north, including through the establishment of a dedicated community infrastructure fund for northern and on-reserve communities. This includes a commitment to the full completion of the Wataynikaneyap Transmission Project, to provide more than 20 communities in Northern Ontario with reliable electric power and seek new, similar opportunities. Del Duca said he is also committed to high-speed broadband internet coverage for all Northern Ontarians and will work with rural community leaders and the telecom companies to ensure complete coverage.

– Canceling the Ford government’s cuts to the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation and establishing a stream of the NOHFC to support Northern Ontario businesses in selling to nearby export markets that are closer than southern Ontario, including customers in Quebec, Manitoba and adjacent US states. Del Duca said he will index annual allocations to the NOHFC to inflation so that the fund retains its purchasing power.

– Increasing the Northern Ontario Energy Credit and expanding eligibility for this benefit. These changes will assist more Ontarians in paying the higher home energy costs they incur as residents of the North.

– Establishing in Northern Ontario the headquarters of government agencies and ministries.

– Working with the federal government and northern communities to ensure settlement of skilled immigrants in the north. He said he will work in close consultation with northern communities to help coordinate and amplify these communities’ existing efforts to attract skilled newcomers.

– Empowering existing regional leadership and planning groups in Northern Ontario to coordinate regional transit planning and funding in these regions. Supporting these groups with initial planning funding and expertise in transit building. Northern communities will also have access to the Climate Resiliency Infrastructure Fund, a new $100-million per year fund he will establish to support municipalities (large and small), farmers, and private industry across Ontario in adapting to the impacts of climate change and building climate resiliency.

– Establishing the Ontario Rural Growth Strategy, which will establish Community Economic Development Credits and Opportunity Zones in rural communities in Northern Ontario.

Quick bio

Steven Del Duca, 47, represented the riding of Vaughan from 2012 to 2018. He served in the cabinet of Kathleen Wynne as minister of Transportation and Minister of Economic Growth and Development.

He lost in the 2018 provincial election when Ontario elected Doug Ford and his Progressive Conservatives.

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