Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne and NDP leader Andrea Horwath are in Thunder Bay today to face off in a debate on northern issues.  Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak has stops in Peterborough, Thornhill and Milton.  Wynne says it’s “inexplicable” that Hudak wouldn’t show up for the Northern Leaders Debate.  “It would never have occurred to me not to come to the northern debate,” Wynne explained, “in fact I called for the northern debate because I think that it’s so important.”  Wynne’s predecessor Dalton McGuinty was absent at the northern debate during the 2011 election, but she says she wasn’t the premier then.

Hudak says he couldn’t make it because of a scheduling conflict, “but I will say this.  I don’t think there’s been any leader who’s spent more time traversing northern Ontario and talking to northerners than me.  I’m the only one who’s listened to northerners in saying you make more of your own decisions than having this downtown southern Ontario mentality forced upon you.”

The Liberals issued a news release last night outlining a list of flights to Thunder Bay with available seats that Hudak could use to still get to today’s debate.  All three party leaders have made different promises to woo northern Ontario voters, including developing the massive Ring of Fire.