MPP Bill Murdoch was back home and Friday and still in fighting spirits over the McGuinty government’s new HST.

Murdoch said in an interview he is pleased with the results of his HST protest that shut down the Ontario Legislature for a couple days and resulted in headlines across the province for himself and fellow MPP Randy Hillier.

Murdoch and Hillier ended up spending two nights at Queen’s Park after they refused to leave the legislature when ordered to by MPP Steve Peters. Operations at the legislature ground to a halt while the two Tory MPPs staged their protest against the HST.

After spending Monday and Tuesday night in the opposition lobby of the House sleeping on couches, Murdoch and Hillier ended the protest on Wednesday morning (December 9).

“I’m out of purgatory,” Murdoch joked on the telephone from his Bognor area farm. “We proved our point. This government doesn’t want to listen. It’s too bad we didn’t get any extra time for rural and northern Ontario to have a chance to have their say on the HST, but I don’t regret what we did,” he said.

Murdoch said he was protesting the lack of public hearings on the HST. He said the vast majority of people in Ontario don’t like the new tax and are opposed to it being implemented. Murdoch’s thoughts were confirmed by new Angus-Reid poll published in the Toronto Star on Friday that shows 75% of Ontarians are opposed to the new tax.

“In a democracy, sometimes you have to do these kinds of these – especially when you have a party in power that refuses to listen,” said Murdoch.

As a result of his refusal to leave the legislature Murdoch has been suspended from the House for the duration of the current session. The suspension could be in place until the government adjourns the House and returns with a speech from the Throne. Murdoch doubts his expulsion will last that long.

“I’m confident we’ll be reinstated by the spring session. I have some assurances of that,” he said. In the meantime, Murdoch said he won’t be able to sit in the House or participate in debates or Question Period, but he will still participate in Progressive Conservative caucus meetings and perform the normal duties of a member.

Murdoch said his opposition to the HST has not ended and he will continue to fight against the new tax. He also said the federal government in Ottawa should be getting some blame as well.

The federal government approved the HST by a massive majority last week. The Conservative government and the Liberal Opposition voted in favour of the HST.

“The feds had the first step when they gave Ontario $4.3 billion to implement the HST. Premier McGuinty said they wouldn’t do it without that money,” he said.