|   					                           News Release                         					  					January 22, 2018   					Provincewide Pre-Budget Consultations Kick Off Today in Toronto  					  						Ontario is seeking public input to help shape  policies and programs that will be part of the province's 2018 Budget.   					  					                          Charles Sousa, Minister of Finance, and Yvan Baker, Parliamentary  Assistant to the Minister of Finance, were joined today by MPPs Cristina  Martins and Han Dong in Toronto to kick off the annual pre-budget  consultations. Consultations will take place over the coming weeks in Windsor,  London, Thornhill, Etobicoke, Niagara region, Hamilton, Ottawa, Kingston,  Oshawa, Brampton, Thunder Bay and Kitchener.   Ontario will also host pre-budget telephone town halls to  reach more people across the province, and ideas can be sent by mail, email or fax (416-325-0969)  by February 9, 2018.   In addition, people are invited to vote by January 26, 2018  for up to three ideas suggested by members of the public through Budget Talks,  an innovative online consultation. The selected ideas will be announced as part  of the 2018 Budget and be eligible for up to $5 million in funding.   Ontario's plan to create fairness and  opportunity during this period of rapid economic change includes a higher  minimum wage and better working conditions, free tuition for hundreds of thousands  of students, easier access to affordable child care, and free prescription  drugs for everyone under 25 through the biggest expansion of medicare in a  generation.     					  				 |