More Smoke & Mirrors from Ontario’s Ford Government on Greenbelt Land Swap Scandal

What We Need Now is an Annoucement from Doug Ford That He is Resigning from Politics Forever

A News Commentary by Doug Draper, reporter and publisher, Niagara At Large

Posted October 16^th, 2023

How much more hogwash do we, the people of Ontario, have to take from Doug Ford’s Ontario government on the Greenbelt scandal – an episode that has now triggered an RCMP criminal investigation – before Ford does the only decent thing he can do and resign?

In the wake of news of that criminal investigation and two scathing reports on nefarious Ford government activities involving Greenbelt land swaps to Ford-friendly developers, highlighted by Ontario’s Auditor General and Integrity Commissioner this past August, followed by the resigning of two Ontario cabinet ministers, senior staff and a lame apology from Ford, his latest Tory hack in the Ministry of Housing portfolio – one Paul Calandra – has now tabled legislation he claims would  reverse the land swaps with those developer cronies in our precious food-producing Greenbelt.

And Calandra, like his shameless predecessor Steve Clark in the now-so-discredited Housing portfolio, held a news conference this October 16^th,  spouting the same baloney as Ford and Clark have that the Greenbelt land swap was a “mistake of process” and nothing more.

Forget about some of the developers in question showing up at Ford’s daughter’s wedding gatherings and any brown evelops that reportedly were exchanged between them and government staff, and reports of the premier wrongly using private email addresses and phone numbers to communicate with whoever during that period of time.

Now we have this latest Ford hack, Calandra, saying the Ford government will be tabling legislation to reverse the land swaps while, of course, not telling us how much of our tax money may be at play in any suit these developers, who reportedly were going to make billions on the land, may now sue for.

And even if this legislation to reverse these land swaps is passed, it does nothing to stop Ford’s plans to build a muli-lane highway through the Greenbelt in the Greater Toronto Area, or to stop the Ford government from expanding urban boundaries into farming areas throughout Ontario, all under the cover of  addressing the province’s housing crisis which has many causes outside of paving over good food-growing land.

In the meantime, here is to the countless number of citizens in Niagara and across the province who have continued to fight the Ford government to save these irreplaceable green lands for present and future generations.

Frankly, I have very mixed feelings about even posting the following news release from Casandra and the Ford government, but for better or wose, here it is –

Ontario Enhancing Greenbelt Protections

Proposal would restore previously removed lands to the Greenbelt and ensure future changes can only be made through legislation

October 16, 2023

TORONTO — Today (this October 16^th, 2023), the Ontario government introduced legislation that, if passed, would restore all properties that were redesignated or removed from the Greenbelt and the Oak Ridges Moraine areas in late 2022.

 If passed, this legislation would also enhance protections for the Greenbelt and the Oak Ridges Moraine areas by ensuring any future boundary changes can only be made through a public and transparent process that would require the approval of the legislature. The Greenbelt Statute Law Amendment Act, 2023 would also restore protections previously provided by the Duffins Rouge Agricultural Preserve Act.

“We are following through on our commitment to fully restore these lands and provide enhanced protections to the Greenbelt moving forward,” said Paul Calandra, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. “At the same time, we remain focused and committed to tackling Ontario’s housing supply crisis and working with our municipal partners to achieve our shared housing targets. We know there’s more work to be done.”

At the same time that it restores all properties that were redesignated or removed, the government is proposing to keep the 9,400 acres (3,800 hectares) in the Greenbelt that were added in 2022. These include lands in the Paris Galt Moraine and in Urban River Valley areas across the Greater Toronto Area.

Restoring the protections and policies of the Greenbelt Act in its entirety includes the need for a review every 10 years, as was mandated by the previous government when the legislation was originally introduced and passed. Moving forward, this review will be led by impartial, nonpartisan experts in conservation, agriculture and environmentalism, and will include engagement with Indigenous communities and municipalities.

Once final, the experts’ recommendations will be provided to the Auditor General and the Commissioner of the Environment for consultation to ensure that the review process was fair and guided by the recent recommendations to improve process.

NIAGARA AT LARGE Encourages You To Join The Conversation By Sharing Your Views On This Post In The Space Following The Bernie Sanders Quote Below.

“A Politician Thinks Of The Next Election. A Leader Thinks Of The Next Generation.” – Bernie Sanders