While the past winter was a mild one, it wasn't nearly mild enough for Londoner Steve Everett who, due to soaring hydro rates, couldn't afford to turn the heat on in his apartment.
At the insistence of his wife, Everett, 69, shared his story at a town hall meeting hosted by London West New Democrat MPP Peggy Sattler at Oakridge Secondary School on Tuesday night.
"One of the things we go without is heat," said Everett. "We have a little $25 Canadian Tire ceramic heater that sits and keeps us warm while we cuddle up with blankets. We dress in layers for life in our apartment."
Everett said he and his wife moved to a new apartment that had better living conditions but where electricity isn't included in their $800 monthly rent. In an effort to keep the cost of their hydro bill down, Everett said he and his wife took steps to scale back their energy consumption. The pair only did laundry during off-peak hours and lived in the dark, only flipping on a light when absolutely necessary. When that didn't lower their bill enough, they shut off their electric heat.
"Even though we cut back so extreme, we're still paying $200 a month and for seniors on a fixed income that's a lot of money," said Everett.
Sattler said that she is hearing these same concerns from families and businesses across her riding.
"Energy poverty is a term that has now become very common when we have discussions about these issues," said Sattler. "We know that for seniors who are on fixed incomes, for people who are on disability or are low income trying to deal with the escalating hydro rates is almost impossible. It's putting them over the edge in their ability to be able to afford groceries. It's becoming heat or eat. That's the choice we keep hearing about."
A 13-page plan unveiled by Ontario’s New Democrats in February, promises hydro ratepayers up to a 30% reduction on their energy bills and would see the end of mandatory time-of-use billing.
"There are some real structural changes that have to be made if we are going to get our energy costs under control," said Sattler. "That's something we have not seen with the Liberals. The Liberals just want to push it off for 30 years at a cost of $40-billion and just leave it for the next generation."
The NDP energy blueprint also includes plans to buy back the 30% of Hydro One shares the Liberal government has sold.
The privatization of Hydro One was brought up by several of the people who attended Sattler's town hall meeting. Many of those people, left the meeting carrying lawn signs reading "Keep Hydro Public."
In March, the Liberal government launched the Fair Hydro Plan, which they said would cut hydro bills by 25%. That figure included any savings from the previously announced removal of the provincial portion of the HST from bills. They also extended the financing period of infrastructure investments to ensure more equitably distributed over time.
The Liberals have claimed electricity prices have risen for two reasons: billions of dollars in overdue investment in hydro infrastructure and the move away from the use of coal to produce electricity in favour of green energy.
Sattler intends to share the feedback she received during the two hour town hall meeting with her fellow MPPs in the Ontario Legislature.