But that was then. They're social events now -- not very glamorous ones, to be sure, but a fixture on the political calendar all the same, a sort of Ascot for the political class: lobbyists and union leaders, deputy ministers and executive assistants, politicians and media, not quite high society but aggressively upper-middle, the semi-monde. There are the regulars: sly young men from the Premier's office, purposeful women in pantsuits, ageing directors of planning with the faces they deserve. And there are the invited guests: party officials, think-tankers, heads of hospital boards, some seated in the gallery above, some on the floor of the chamber itself, all silently rehearsing their sound bites. As I say, it's all very festive, in a drab, cheerless sort of way -- much like federal budgets used to be, back when we had those.

The program is always the same. First the Lieutenant-Governor reads the speech, large portions of which are written in a language with which she does not appear to be familiar.

(The other bits are in French.) Then everyone sings O Canada, pausing slightly over the parts where the words were changed a few years ago, and trots out into the lobby to mingle. In that confined space, the air is heavy with body odour and cliches. Escape is impossible. The television lights and sound booms have seen to that. Nothing to do but, well, read the speech.

It's a bizarre document, not so much announcing anything new as announcing further announcements. The Tories, having earlier dispensed with such arcane parliamentary rituals as "debate" in favour of omnibus bills and closure, will now no longer bother even to introduce legislation -- at least not in the legislature. Instead, Mike Harris, the Premier, has set out on a tour of the province, each day to unveil another policy, in front of the usual media-friendly backdrop -- rather as if he were campaigning, which in fact he is.

The Speech from the Throne is just the trailer. The main feature is yet to come.

At this point, it's impossible to tell if all this amounts to a bold relaunching of the Common Sense Revolution, after several years of drift, or just more drift, better packaged. The speech is filled with the usual empty boasts and meaningless targets ("within 10 years Ontario will enjoy the best-performing economy and the highest quality of life in North America") that are the staple of every Throne Speech. But it also contains more than its quota of ambiguous phrases, hinting at much, yet promising little.

Take health care, for instance, in some ways the centrepiece of the speech. Under the "slash-and-burn" Tories, total spending is now higher than under the "spendthrift" New Democrats, mostly because of the Tories' abject refusal to do anything to rein in health care costs. The speech soberly advises that "double-digit increases in health spending are no longer sustainable," as if to suggest they once were. "Responsible choices and tough decisions are needed," it urges, "not merely to sustain, but quite literally to save, Canada's health care system." Indeed. What choices? What decisions? Well, er, "fundamental reform." And, um, "an open, national discussion." More money from Ottawa, of course, and much consensus- seeking here at home. Oh, and one specific: "the budget will introduce measures that would require the entire public sector, including hospitals, to act in a fiscally responsible measure." That sounds like a ban on hospital deficits. Much like the one that's already in place. The one that several hospital boards just successfully defied -- to the tune of a $177-million bailout by the province. But stay tuned: "Further accountability reforms will be announced April 30." There's lots more in that vein. The government promises, as it has promised before, to "open the electricity market" to competition. When? No answer, but further announcements are imminent. Parents will be given "more choice" to enrol their children in any "available" school "within their system." What do these weasel words mean? Is school choice government policy or not? All will be revealed. Or not. We'll see.

Finally, the government "will sell businesses it should not operate and assets it should not own." Which ones? "The first in a series of privatizations will be announced in the budget." Yes, yes, and? "The government will strike a panel to make recommendations on the appropriate role of government ... what its businesses should and shouldn't be; where it belongs and where it does not." Which is just about the size of things: Six years after it took office, this government needs a panel to tell it why it came to power in the first place.

HIGHLIGHTS: From the Ontario government's Throne Speech yesterday: HEALTH: - Ban doctors convicted of health fraud from billing OHIP; - Force hospitals to operate without running deficits; - Have provincial consultations with patients, nurses, doctors and hospitals on health care reform; EDUCATION: - Allow parents to enroll children in any school in their area; - Allow principals to deviate from approved guidelines to use phonics, for example, to teach reading; - Ensure every "willing and qualified" student has a place at a post-secondary institution; - Expand standardized testing and create a system of early years centres to promote pre- school education; ECONOMY: - Proceed with tax cuts; - Introduce legislation to encourage growth in the "digital economy"; - Open Ontario's electricity market to competition; PRIVATIZATION: - Sell government agencies it shouldn't operate and assets it shouldn't own.

RESTRAINT: - Implement zero-based budgeting for ministries, agencies; - Give Ontario's auditor the power to review the books of publicly funded institutions.

- Force public municipalities, hospitals and school boards to "act in a fiscally responsible manner" including measures to ban deficits; - Ensure public funding for programs to help people are not diverted to lobbyists and advocacy groups; ECONOMY - Proceed with promised tax cuts; - Introduce legislation to encourage growth in the "digital economy;" - Open Ontario's electricity market to competition; - Strike a new task force to measure, monitor and compare Ontario's productivity, competitiveness and economic progress with other provinces and the U.S.;

- Implement "Smart Growth," a program to reduce gridlock, encourage public transit, highway expansion and development of abandoned or contaminated land; OTHER - More help to get people off welfare; - Measures to enhance victims rights and promote safe communities; - Introduce legislation to enshrine protection for people with disabilities; - Parliamentary reform to give MPPs more say in the Legislature and allow specific laws to be challenged without questioning confidence in the government +++