ETOBICOKE – During the third stop of his affordability tour, mayoral candidate Anthony Perruzza met with Etobicoke resident Saira Batasar-Johnie and her family in their home.

“Too many families in the city are struggling to pay the bills during this time of high inflation,” said Perruzza. “I met with Saira, her mom Zai and her family because it’s vital that we listen to Torontonians and what they are going through. My priority is the people of Toronto and making their lives more affordable.”

Saira works at a university as a part-time lecturer, she is married to a sales and software professional, and has two young children. As a mom, she is feeling the pinch of higher inflation and property taxes.  

“Costs are too high and I am also concerned for my mother,” said Saira. “She is 69-years-old and works at McDonald’s to pay for the mortgage and to support our 83-year-old Granny and a disabled family member. We are all pitching in, but we can’t afford any more increases to our bills.”

For an increasing number of Toronto families, higher property taxes and city costs mean pushing the family budget over the edge.  

“The city shouldn’t be putting residents in a position where they either have to sell their homes or work into their 70s to pay property taxes,” said Perruzza. “We can’t have a vibrant city if families are struggling with payments, whether these are high TTC fares, fees or property taxes. We should be there for residents, providing public services that help families, not regressive taxes that push them out of the city because they can’t afford to live here.”

Anthony Perruzza’s priority is to help Torontonians get by during these tough times. As Mayor, he will stop the hikes on property tax, TTC fares and user fees.  Perruzza is calling for a better deal for Toronto, instead of giving away $2.2 billion in property taxes to the provincial government each year.

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Media Contact: Ayesha Khan, (647) 771-2395, ayesha@perruzza.ca