Ontario spent highest-ever amount on government ads, auditor says

Ontario’s auditor general says the province spent three times the amount of money on government advertising in the last fiscal year as it did the year before – the highest amount ever.

Auditor General Shelley Spence says the amounts spent on government advertising generally follow a pattern, peaking in the year before a provincial election.

As part of her annual report, the auditor found that for the year ending March 31, Ontario spent $103.5 million on government advertising, more than three times the $33.7 million it spent in the previous year.

The two biggest campaigns focused on promoting Ontario’s economy, including nearly $19 million for ads with the tag line, “What if I told you that you already live here,” which ran during NHL games and the Super Bowl.

The government spent $43.2 million on that overall campaign, which included four separate pillars, and the auditor says she flagged those ads as ones that would not have passed muster under previous rules about partisan ads.

The former Liberal government changed those rules in 2015 and despite promising to undo the changes, the Progressive Conservatives have stuck with them.

Allison Jones, The Canadian Press