“This is our voice. It’s a voice of hope, for those who’ve lost hope. A voice of optimism for those who could use some right now. A voice that says it’s time for conservatives to lead again!”
- Ontario PC Leader Tim Hudak, Niagara Falls, February 11, 2012

NIAGARA FALLS – Ontario PC Leader Tim Hudak vowed today that he and his Party would offer a clear, conservative vision for restoring our province’s economy and stature in Canada.

“We have found our voice,” Hudak said, addressing more than 1,600 delegates to the Party’s 2012 Annual General Meeting. “It’s a strong, positive voice that advances conservative ideas, values and principles and projects optimism for a better future for our province.

“We are today the Party of ideas for jobs and our economy.”

The task ahead isn’t just about defeating the Liberals in the next election, Hudak stressed. “It’s about the work that begins the very next day – to turn our province around on behalf of the nearly 600,000 men and women who now don’t have a job in Dalton McGuinty’s Ontario.

“We’ll start by getting the big things right. We’ll treat taxpayer dollars with respect. We’ll build an economy driven by innovation and hard work, not handouts. And we’ll look to business planners, not central planners.”

Ontarians know in their hearts that there’s a way out of Dalton McGuinty’s mess, Hudak said: “They reject the defeatist notion that our best days are behind us, and that the only challenge now is how best to manage our fall from grace.”

Last October 6th, Ontarians signalled that “those PCs may be onto something – but they’ve got more work to do,” Hudak said. “So they sent us reinforcements: Twelve more seats and 16 new MPPs, who represent renewal and symbolize momentum.

“Our trajectory is upward and we’re on the right path. Ours is a Party on the rise, and the Liberals are a Party in decline.”

With the right climate for private sector job creation, and a smaller, smarter government, Ontario can and will bestride Confederation again, Hudak said. “And our efforts will be framed by a conservative campaign that we can all be proud of, and a platform that says what it means.

“We are an Ontario PC Party for the 21st century,” Hudak concluded, “with a proud and unapologetic voice and a vision for a renewed Ontario that will lead Canada – and the world.”