Progressive Conservatives vow to find enough savings to balance budgets

Nova Scotia's Progressive Conservative Party is banking on doing better than the Stephen McNeil Liberals in rooting out waste in health administration, driving a harder bargain in negotiating contracts and fuelling economic growth to deliver balanced budgets for the next four years.

On Thursday, Tory Leader Jamie Baillie launched the party's platform, surrounded by a cheering section of Tory candidates and enthusiastic party members.

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"The Progressive Conservative platform is optimistic. It is pro-growth. It is hopeful. It is confident. Our platform is focused on job creation and long-lasting prosperity for all Nova Scotians," he told party faithful.

The speech was 8 minutes long, a fraction of the hour-plus time it took party officials to explain the platform to reporters earlier in the day.

Balancing budget is the 'bottom line'

The platform contains election goodies such as the reinstatement of the $27-million university graduate retention rebate and a $32.5-million promise to bring back vocational schools.

However, PC officials had trouble explaining the math needed to keep the books balanced.

Despite the confusion, Baillie was adamant his government is able to fullfill its promises and deliver balanced budgets.

"The bottom line is 'balanced' in the platform," the PC leader told reporters.

The platform consists of $650 million in spending promises over four years including:

• $32.8 million to reverse Liberal cuts to long-term care homes
• $124 million to bring back a new version of the Film Tax Credit
• $600,000 to establish an independent office of the Commissioner of Ethics and Conflict of Interest
• $200,000 for free fishing licenses for seniors
• $100,000 tax rebate for people with service dogs

Millions could be cut from health-care administration

The PCs remain convinced they can offset those extra costs by finding savings. For example, Baillie said the Nova Scotia Health Authority appeared to be over administered.

"In health care, I believe there's millions and millions, actually."

Like NDP Leader Gary Burrill, Baillie promised to repeal Bill 75, which imposed a contract on the province's 9,300 teachers. If elected, Baillie also plans to renegotiate the deal the Liberals negotiated with Bay Ferries to run the ferry between Yarmouth and Portland, Maine.

There, too, he said there are millions in tax dollars to be saved.

"Absolutely. Absolutely. It's not fair. It's not fair to ask Nova Scotians to cover 100 percent of the losses while the ferry operator gets a guaranteed profit," Baillie told reporters.

Liberal reaction

Dartmouth North Liberal candidate Joanne Bernard said she was puzzled by the PC's platform because itpromises to keep the budget balanced withoutraising taxes or cutting services.

"It has to come from somewhere, so you're either going to do it through the tax base or you're going to cut programs and services," she told reporters at her campaign office.

Bernard expected a much clearer fiscal picture from Baillie,a chartered accountant by trade.

"Quite frankly, Nova Scotians deserve more. They've been told by this leader over the last two weeks that it'll all be answered in the platform," she said."Today, we were left with more questions about how he's going to pay for everything."