Mitchell was reacting to Finance Minister Dwight Duncan’s fall economic statement delivered in the legislature this afternoon.
Duncan says the province will run a 500-million dollar defecit instead of cutting programs in an effort to balance the province’s books.
Mitchell says there will be an impact on further development of community health care in Huron-Bruce and across the province.
She says there will be a slowdown in forming new Family Health Teams and in hiring new nurses.
Mitchell says any new capital work on schools will also be put off if it’s not absolutely necessary.
Mitchell says she wants to allay any concerns among municipal officials over infrastructure funding announced in August.
Mitchell says the 1.1-billion dollar announcement is not affected by measures in the economic statement because it’s a portion of an earlier surplus that had to be distributed under provincial legislation.
Mitchell says another McGuinty government initative will be unaffected by cuts to program deliveries contained in the statement.
She says the provincial poverty strategy will be unveiled in December as scheuled.
Mitchell says the McGuinty government is acting in a fiscally-responsible manner while trying to provide vital services for Ontarians in a challenging time.
