10 Reasons

As most of you already know, Warren has posted a great speech entitled "Top Ten Reasons Why McGuinty's a Winner". I agree with all of his reasons, and I've always said McGuinty has no fear going into 2007. One point I'd like to sort of add to the list is this:

When the Liberals came into power, they instituted the UK-style Results-based planning, or Rbp into the OPS. Rbp is in techno-speak:

The results-based planning process is linked to the budget and priorities of the government. This planning process is focused on rationalizing government policies, programs and services based on the priorities of Ontarians and measuring outcomes. This marks a real change from the ad-hoc and input-driven planning process of the past. Ministries are developing four-year results-based plans that identify how they will contribute to the achievement of the government’s key priorities. Ministries’ infrastructure strategies will be consistent with the infrastructure component of their results-based plans.

Sounds boring right? Here's how its gonna make a HUGE difference... Rbp basically works like this: You have four years and a finite amount of dollars each year. In every four-year political cycle, two years are for planning and changing, and two years are more or less campaigning. Rbp compliments this process because it forces the people who control the purse-strings, and the people developing the plans to examine ideas and programs to focus on the real, tangible results those actions will produce. That doesn't mean the end of long-term planning, just that plans need to achieve mileposts by proposed dates. And they better, lemmie tell ya.

This allows the elected fellows to spend two years touting the quantifiable results of their changes, and contrast it to the vague figures and uncollected facts of the previous government. The result is real change people can see on the ground, and a more rigid structure for accountable and transparent government spending.

Neat, huh?