* Ontario offers more money for childcare, disabled
* Says it will further cut prices paid for generic drugs
* Budget vote set for Tuesday
TORONTO, April 20 (Reuters) – Ontario’s minority Liberals
offered more money for childcare and people with disabilities on
Friday in a tweak to its budget designed to win the support of
the left-wing New Democratic Party, which the government needs
to stay in power.
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said the government will
further cut the price it pays for the most popular generic drugs
– for people covered under public drug benefit programs – in
order to fund some of the changes.
In 2010, Ontario slashed the cost of generic prescription
drugs from 50 percent of the price of the brand names to 25
percent, pummeling shares of Canadian pharmacist Shoppers Drug
Mart Corp, the dominant drug retailer in the province.
Ontario now says it will move immediately to lower the cost
it pays on the top 10 generic drugs to 20 percent of the brand
name prices.
The Liberals require the backing of either opposition party
– the NDP or the right-leaning Conservatives – to pass the
budget and dodge a second election in only six months.
All three parties, including the Conservatives – who have
already said they won’t support the budget – will vote on the
government’s spending plan on Tuesday.
“Today I spoke with (NDP leader Andrea Horwath) about these
discussions and indicated a willingness to work together to
reach an agreement,” McGuinty said a statement issued late
Friday.
“Over the weekend, we’ll continue to analyze how else we may
be able to work together to make the budget stronger.”
The NDP is largely expected to cooperate with the Liberals.
The party has outlined a series of proposals to the make the
budget fairer, including a tax hike for the richest earners in
the province, capping pay for public sector executives and
creating a tax credit for companies that create jobs.
NDP House Leader Gilles Bisson responded to McGuinty’s
statement with his own: “Since the election we’ve made it clear
we want minority government to work. We’ll look closely at the
proposals put forward by the Premier today.”
