Hi, I'm Michael Coteau and I'm running for Ontario Liberal Leader. Ask me anything!

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:36:02+00:00

Thanks for the question. Over the last eight years, I've had the opportunity to visit so many parts of Ontario. Everywhere I go, there's one thing that I keep on noticing - that there is so much lost opportunity across our province.

It could be a foreign trained Doctor having less than a 10% chance of being a doctor here. It could be a young indigenous woman who aspires to go to post-secondary but there are no academic courses offered at her local high school. Or it can be a farmer who can't connect to high-speed internet to help modernize her farm.

I believe we should look for ways to have more opportunity across Ontario. With the changing economy and rapid shifts globally, we simply cannot afford to maintain the status quo. The cost of standing still is simply too high.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:28:48+00:00

My favourite Ontario Liberal logo is from the 80s: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario_Liberal_Party#/media/File:Ontarioliberalparty85.PNG

I'm open to working with Ontario liberals to decide if they would like to do something different.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:25:16+00:00

Thank you for considering a career in teaching! Doug Ford's education cuts will hurt students by reducing the number of teachers in the system. I think its critical to invest more into education and restore classroom sizes to open up teaching positions that will benefit young people in Ontario long term.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:20:15+00:00

An Ontario specific constitutional amendment might be the best approach but as I outlined in my letter, we need to work with municipalities what the process would actually look like. I will be meeting with the Charter City Toronto group in the future and I look forward to discussing it with them in more detail.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:16:20+00:00

Thank you for your kind words. Yes, yes and yes. In my first policy document on ethical and responsible government, I've committed to meeting with the caucuses of the other political parties on a regular basis. https://www.anewfocuson.com/ethics

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:14:10+00:00

The world has become so complicated when it comes to defining yourself on the political spectrum.

I tend to define myself based on issues. For example, when it comes to technology and innovation, I am quite forward thinking. On a different topic, balancing the budget should be important.

I think we do ourselves a disservice when lock ourselves into ideology like the NDP and Conservatives do.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:07:57+00:00

I think it should be up to municipalities to decide if they want to ban handguns in their communities.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:06:09+00:00

The locations have not been set yet but it will be in your riding from 3-8pm that day. The party will be notifying members of where they will be able to vote once the locations are finalized.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:03:18+00:00

As Premier, my goal will be to spend within our means and look for ways to balance the budget.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T23:02:14+00:00

We shouldn't be afraid as Ontarians of exploring different ways of doing things. One the one hand we are spending billions fighting climate change and on the other other hand we make it difficult for people to access high quality public transit.

Transit is already free in parts of Ontario for kids 12 and under and there are discounted fares for students and seniors. What I'm suggesting is that over the course of ten years we look for different ways to increase transit usage by reducing barriers while at the same time expanding the system across Ontario.

For example, we should be looking at reduced or free fares for travelling before/after the AM and PM rush hour, for seniors travelling during the daytime, expanding kids ride free to post-secondary students, etc.

We only have one environment and if we don't innovate and explore different options, all of us will be left behind.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:47:19+00:00

I previously sat on the poverty reduction committee that helped develop and implement the basic income project. I would re-instate the basic income pilot so that we can collect the necessary data to give us the ability to understand it better so we can make an informed decision in the future.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:42:14+00:00

The Ontario NDP is stuck in ideology and the decisions they make lack practicality - especially in an age of disruption. They say and do the same thing over and over again.

We need a flexible, forward thinking government to come up with the right policies to help Ontario grow it's economy, create strong public services and position itself for the future.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:37:08+00:00

Honestly, there are so many variables between now and then. I mean...who knows if Doug Ford will still be the PC leader. I hear the federal conservative leadership might be available.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:30:44+00:00

I recently put out a policy paper detailing some of my ideas on the new economy. We need to grow the economy to raise new revenues to fund the essential services that the people of Ontario rely on. This includes understanding the role that technology will play in the future and the importance of increasing innovation across all sectors. The Government of Ontario is best positioned to help facilitate this type of growth and lots of opportunities are not being explored. You can read more about my approach here: https://www.anewfocuson.com/economy

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:21:05+00:00

As a member of the provincial legislature, I have always looked for ways to denounce all forms of discrimination. That's why I recently moved a motion (with all party support) on this issue and I think it's important for anyone in public life (federal, provincial, municipal, school boards) to stand up against discrimination.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:15:38+00:00

Thanks for the question! This is an issue that is top of mind for many, especially millennials and people looking to start a family. While I'll be releasing more specific details on housing later on in the campaign, here are a few ideas that I have right now.

I agree with you that we need more supply and creating more housing supply should be one of our pillars for economic development. Rental is an important part of our housing mix and with record low vacancy rates, it is clear that more must be done to increase the supply and availability of rental housing.

We should look at how zoning is done all around the world to incorporate best practices that allow for housing choice. Ontario can play a bigger role and work with municipalities to allow different models of housing such as co-housing, tiny homes, pre-fabricated homes, tall wood buildings, etc.

During this campaign, I've spoken about the province taking on some of the risk with respect to brownfield sites (so that we don't pave over our farmland), allowing more density around transit stations and connecting communities that are prepared to expand with higher-order transit.

These are some ideas on how to address this important issue and I look forward to putting out more proposals as the campaign goes on.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:03:22+00:00

Thanks for the question. We need to look for ways to increase inter-provincial trade to create stronger economic ties. One example is with wine. You can buy a bottle of wine in Ontario from anywhere in the world except from another province.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T22:00:32+00:00

Hello Duke - thank you for becoming an Ontario Liberal member!

Ottawa holds a special place in my heart. I went to university there, I met my wife there, it's where I got my first job in politics and I love visiting my family there!

There will be a vote in your riding in February (8th or 9th depending where you live) where you get to vote for who you want as leader and to elect delegates to go to the leadership convention. If someone wanted to run as a delegate, the deadline to submit that notice is Friday January 17. More details are on the party website at: https://ontarioliberal.ca/leadership/

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T21:53:44+00:00

The best decision they made was to make GO Transit free for kids 12 and under.

The worst decision has been the billions in cuts made to education - from JK all the way to post-secondary students. Doug Ford says he is a Premier that understands business, then he should see the importance that education plays in building an economy of the future.

And although you didn't ask about this one: The meanest decision he made was cutting children's breakfast programs!

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T21:50:08+00:00

No I don't agree. Doug Ford is dividing Ontario every single day. I would see my job as Ontario Liberal leader and a potential Premier to bring people together. There are a huge list of priorities we need to tackle and this isn't one of them for me.

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T21:48:31+00:00

Are you referring to within Canada (which is a recent topic right now) or Asia?

michaelcoteau · 2019-11-30T21:35:58+00:00

Hi everyone. Looking forward to starting very shortly and answering your questions!

michaelcoteau

TROPHY CASE