Ontario Liberals defending $500k MLSE payment

It was revealed yesterday that the province quietly gave Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment $500,000 to help bring the NBA all-star game to Toronto.

The Liberals never issued a news release to announce the funding from its “Celebrate Ontario Blockbuster” program.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation says MLSE was recently valued at over $2 billion and that it “doesn’t exactly need corporate welfare.”

Premier Kathleen Wynne defended the move, and Tourism Minister Michael Chan says the organization came forward with a proposal that the government looked at from all angles.

MLSE is predicting the NBA all-star game will generate around $100 million for Toronto.