Ontario Majority Government 2022-2026 (?)

[Fishbone Jones]

Yup!

That'd be cool, thanks - and if it was out there, I'm surprised it wasn't higher profile than it was. Last I saw in detail showed no details, and reminded folks OPP probed Team Red Chiefs of Staff ....

RCMP reviewing potential ‘irregularities’ in Ontario Greenbelt development after referral from OPP

The announcement comes a day after the chief of staff to Ontario’s Housing Minister resigned, saying his actions had been ‘unfairly depicted’

www.theglobeandmail.com

OPP’s ‘conflict of interest’ on Greenbelt probe puzzles police watchers

Handoff to RCMP after months of brewing controversy may speak to need for standalone squads that probe political matters

www.theglobeandmail.com

The potential for perception of the bit in yellow is part of what Team OPP said led to a referral to Team Mounties.

Most people already knew that. Some figure it strengthens their soapbox if the ignore the real truth and spin up some amazingly goofy shit to vent their spleen.

 

[suffolkowner]

That would be a stretch even if I said it.

I am but the student. For the record it was tongue in cheek

but whats worse that there might have been a kickback or the Premier is such an idiot he did it for nothing and actually believes the stuff he says?

 

[The Bread Guy]

... Some figure it strengthens their soapbox if the ignore the real truth and spin up some amazingly goofy shit to vent their spleen.

That's been known to happen from time to time, indeed ...

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

Well done meme....

 

[The Bread Guy]

Well done meme....

Never takes long, does it?

Meanwhile, an internal review is apparently going to happen ....

Greenbelt land swaps to be reviewed, Ontario Premier Doug Ford says

TORONTO — Ontario will review the Greenbelt land swaps that two provincial watchdogs have said were rushed and flawed, Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday, though he indicated development will continue in the meantime. Assessing 14 sites the government removed from the Greenbelt for housing...

ca.finance.yahoo.com

Toronto, Canada and Global Breaking News – CP24

Most recent News News business news stories and video from CP24

www.cp24.com

The catch? This from the second link ...

... Ford has previously said he expects construction of the 50,000 homes slated to be built on those lands to have started by no later than 2025 and for "significant progress" on approvals to have been made by the end of this year.

The premier did not immediately have information on how long the newly announced review is expected to take, but the last one took two years ...

As others have said about other governments promising a review, good way to stall.

 

[IKnowNothing]

Never takes long, does it?

Meanwhile, an internal review is apparently going to happen ....

Greenbelt land swaps to be reviewed, Ontario Premier Doug Ford says

TORONTO — Ontario will review the Greenbelt land swaps that two provincial watchdogs have said were rushed and flawed, Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday, though he indicated development will continue in the meantime. Assessing 14 sites the government removed from the Greenbelt for housing...

ca.finance.yahoo.com

Toronto, Canada and Global Breaking News – CP24

Most recent News News business news stories and video from CP24

www.cp24.com

The catch? This from the second link ...

As others have said about other governments promising a review, good way to stall.

Man he's got to be under a lot of pressure to keep that land out of the belt- Clark's resignation coupled with throwing him under the bus and reversing the decision could have given him complete plausible deniability and ended the issue.

Carrying this forward lets it linger, and potentially brings him into the crosshairs.

 

[The Bread Guy]

Man he's got to be under a lot of pressure to keep that land out of the belt- Clark's resignation coupled with throwing him under the bus and reversing the decision could have given him complete plausible deniability and ended the issue.

Carrying this forward lets it linger, and potentially brings him into the crosshairs.

I'm not as confident of that necessarily happening. Unless somewhere in the process it can be proved that politicians directly got some of the cash profit from the land value increases, it'll be "but Wynne/McGuinty were worse" on one side, "the f@#$%^&*('er's are corrupt just because of the process" on the other, and most potential voters who show up not being directly affected one way or another.

 

[IKnowNothing]

I'm not as confident of that necessarily happening. Unless somewhere in the process it can be proved that politicians directly got some of the cash profit from the land value increases, it'll be "but Wynne/McGuinty were worse" on one side, "the f@#$%^&*('er's are corrupt just because of the process" on the other, and most potential voters who show up not being directly affected one way or another.

Oh there's definitely a good chance that it just fades from the news cycle. But as long as the decisions of a publicly grossly flawed process that has led to two high level resignations are (inexplicably/stubbornly) allowed to stand, there are going to people pulling on the thread. To some extent Ford is now stick his own neck out there not reversing the decision, for what political gain?

 

[The Bread Guy]

... Ford is now stick his own neck out there not reversing the decision, for what political gain?

No crystal ball near me, but I suspect the Team Blue's political calculus is that more housing can get more votes more easily than how many votes'll leave because of some process hanky-panky.

 

[IKnowNothing]

No crystal ball near me, but I suspect the Team Blue's political calculus is that appearance of more housing to the gullible can get more votes more easily than how many votes'll leave because of some process hanky-panky.

Fixed.

Unless, sadly, this musing is more accurate than should be the case

but whats worse that there might have been a kickback or the Premier is such an idiot he did it for nothing and actually believes the stuff he says?

 

[Fishbone Jones]

The red and orange liberals will beat it to death until people are sick and tired of their whining again. They are the only real ones pushing this. And it's for gottcha politics, not a solution to the housing problem. They are always pretty colic with their criticism, but very, very seldom offer any kind of workable alternative. I have yet to hear them espouse their solutions to the housing crisis. Two weeks is a massively long time in politics. Never mind two years till the election. In the long run, it's hyperbolic hot air and I doubt it will affect Ford's numbers to any damaging extent. At least he's standing up and facing the critics, unlike the way Wynne and Horvath always ran and hid from criticism.

 

[IKnowNothing]

The red and orange liberals will beat it to death until people are sick and tired of their whining again. They are the only real ones pushing this. And it's for gottcha politics, not a solution to the housing problem. They are always pretty colic with their criticism, but very, very seldom offer any kind of workable alternative. I have yet to hear them espouse their solutions to the housing crisis. Two weeks is a massively long time in politics. Never mind two years till the election. In the long run, it's hyperbolic hot air and I doubt it will affect Ford's numbers to any damaging extent. At least he's standing up and facing the critics, unlike the way Wynne and Horvath always ran and hid from criticism.

Have you ever stopped to consider issues based on their merits rather blindly defending one team and assuming that anyone that has a problem with it is solely opposed to it because they're on the other?

The issue isn't whether or not it hurts Ford's chances of re-election. The issue is whether or not having the administration's hand caught in the cookie jar forces Ford to actually do something material about housing rather than just carrying on enabling developers and using the crisis as an excuse to make it more blatant.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Have you ever stopped to consider issues based on their merits rather blindly defending one team and assuming that anyone that has a problem with it is solely opposed to it because they're on the other?

The issue isn't whether or not it hurts Ford's chances of re-election. The issue is whether or not having the administration's hand caught in the cookie jar forces Ford to actually do something material about housing rather than just carrying on enabling developers and using the crisis as an excuse to make it more blatant.

Every time. I just like to boil things down to the real lowest denominator when it comes to politics. Just to make it clear to someone like you. You've got your RCMP referral, you've got the AG report, you've got the internal review and resignations. However some, like you, would never be satisfied until Ford commits seppuku. So yeah, just raw politic. Continue to tilt at windmills, if that's what keeps you happy..

 

[Good2Golf]

WHATABOUT ALERT!

You've got your RCMP referral, you've got the AG report, you've got the internal review and resignations.

Luxury!! Back in the Federal days, we’d have been lucky to have just one of these! Lol

 

[IKnowNothing]

Just to make it clear to someone like you. You've got your RCMP referral, you've got the AG report, you've got the internal review and resignations. However some, like you, would never be satisfied until Ford commits seppuku. So yeah, just raw politic. Continue to tilt at windmills, if that's what keeps you happy..

Would you consider reversing the greenbelt decision and changing course to "actually do something material about housing rather than just carrying on enabling developers and using the crisis as an excuse to make it more blatant" to be "committing seppuku"?

Because I don't give two shits if Ford resigns or not, or gets reelected or not. I just want him to smarten up, get the collective developer puppeteer out of his/ his administration's ass, and do some good governing on the housing file in the years his majority has left.

 

[brihard]

Completely reversing the impugned land decisions, and subjecting them to objective reassessment would certainly seem to be called for. Apology alone is thin gruel; accountability in my mind means actually doing something to rectify the fault.

I’m not in any position to gauge if in fact there was corruption. There’s an appearance of impropriety and a couple of resignations, which is enough that we can all see this as quite questionable. Reassessing the designations doesn’t seem like it would stop and shovels that were to imminently go into the ground. Builds are planned years out.

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Ford has a good start in sorting it out. The steps already outlined are more than most expected. More are coming as the info comes in. I know some "I want it yesterday" types will never be satisfied though. The self righteous indignation of the champagne socialists is laughable.

You want my real thoughts on the Green Belt? I don't care about it at all. It was a political ploy that got out of hand and took on a life of it's own. It's a Toronto problem and I could care less about Toronto.

In the meantime, the vast majority of this huge province is getting to work building infrastructure and homes, with funds and guidance of the Ontario government. Not sitting around whining.

So carry on with whatever turns your crank. The rest of the province is busy getting shit done and can't be bothered with more of Toronto's perceived problems.

 

[brihard]

Ford has a good start in sorting it out. The steps already outlined are more than most expected. More are coming as the info comes in. I know some "I want it yesterday" types will never be satisfied though. The self righteous indignation of the champagne socialists is laughable.

You want my real thoughts on the Green Belt? I don't care about it at all. It was a political ploy that got out of hand and took on a life of it's own. It's a Toronto problem and I could care less about Toronto.

In the meantime, the vast majority of this huge province is getting to work building infrastructure and homes, with funds and guidance of the Ontario government. Not sitting around whining.

So carry on with whatever turns your crank. The rest of the province is busy getting shit done and can't be bothered with more of Toronto's perceived problems.

Fair to say- there’s nothing wrong with questioning the greenbelt as a policy writ large.

But, the fact set being what it is, I think it’s also fair to say, completely party-agnostic, that what we’ve seen with these development approvals would be questionable under any government and should be questioned.

I don’t personally have any partisan axe to grind on this one. I’ve voted PC provincially in the past and likely will in at least some future elections. I have no major gripe with our current provincial government and God knows the previous one was well pst its best by date. I’m simply very concerned about what this appears to potentially be.

Lands picked for development today won’t actually be built on for years and there’s a ton of other shovel-ready land awaiting trades availability to start building. This specific issue can be examined and hammered out with an eye to ethical correctness and accountability, without in any way interrupting the desperately needed growth of our province’s housing supply. I would expect the same of any party in government faced with this controversy.

 

[The Bread Guy]

Completely reversing the impugned land decisions, and subjecting them to objective reassessment would certainly seem to be called for ...

If Team Blue Ontario said "it's back to square one", the chances are well above zero that now-back-to-farmland owners would squeal and litigate.

Given resignations, internal reviews announced, and public statements by the principals about the process being ... less than ideal, even without police probe answers being out there yet, provincial government lawyers would have an uphill push defending the case in court, no?

 

[brihard]

If Team Blue Ontario said "it's back to square one", the chances are well above zero that now-back-to-farmland owners would squeal and litigate.

Given resignations, internal reviews announced, and public statements by the principals about the process being ... less than ideal, even without police probe answers being out there yet, provincial government lawyers would have an uphill push defending the case in court, no?

Not sure, that’s probably a big legal mess that’s well outside the realms of law I have any familiarity with. You’re right that it would likely be very tricky.