With some major components of the provincial budget already released including the Hydro One sell off and expanding beer sales to grocery stores, Finance Minister Charles Sousa talks about what other details will be included when the budget is presented tomorrow…

In the lead up to the budget’s presentation, is a teachers strike in Durham Region with the threat of more ahead.  Sousa says the province is looking to control costs as it tries to meet a commitment to have a balanced budget by 2017-18…

Teachers in the Sudbury area Rainbow District School Board are set to walk out on Monday.      The provincial government’s efforts to control costs has been felt by hospitals as they have had to make cuts to try to balance their own budgets.  Sousa didn’t indicate whether there would be anything specific to address these concerns in tomorrow’s budget…

The Ontario Health Care Coalition has been very vocal in its opposition to what it calls severe hospital cuts and the threat of privatization of home care and hospital services.  Cuts announced earlier this year at Sault Area Hospital were to impact about 42 staffing positions including 35 full time to deal with a 10 million dollar funding shortfall.  The Coalition has organized mass protests in each region in Ontario including earlier this month in Sudbury.  A town hall was held here in the Sault in late February.