Ontario Premier Doug Ford sits in the Ontario legislature during Question Period as members debate a bill meant to avert a planned strike by 55,000 education workers.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
The Ontario government’s latest use of the notwithstanding clause is at odds with its stated intention to keep kids in school amid a labour dispute — and at odds with the heart of labour relations norms.
Until the government acknowledges the critical role family physicians have in population health and on easing the burden on acute hospital care, pressures will only be relieved temporarily.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
A strong primary care system keeps patients away from emergency departments and helps patients self-manage illnesses. But Ontario’s plan to ease pressure on emergency rooms ignores family medicine.
A for sale sign outside a home indicates that it has sold for over the asking price, in Ottawa, in March 2021. House prices and rents have become increasingly more unaffordable in Ontario over the past few years.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Canada’s current economic growth model is currently dependent on the conversion of housing from a human right into a financial investment tool, leading to an ever-worsening housing crisis.
Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Leader Doug Ford, Ontario New Democratic Party Leader Andrea Horwath, Ontario Liberal Party Leader Steven Del Duca and Green Party of Ontario Leader Mike Schreiner debate during the Ontario party leaders’ debate in May 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
Some excellent ideas were proposed during the Ontario election on everything from transit to housing. Here’s why the rest of Canada would be wise to consider them.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is joined on stage by his wife Karla at a victory party for his Progressive Conservatives after their return to power with an increased majority.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
Doug Ford and his party have successively portrayed themselves as competent managers adapting to the needs of Ontario in 2022. Whether their policy record actually holds up is a different story.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford attends a photo opportunity on a construction site in Brampton as he kicks off his re-election campaign on May 4, 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Looking back on Ford’s four years in power reveals four themes in his approach to governance — and what the next four years might have in store if he wins again.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaks at a campaign event in Pickering, Ont., on May 5, 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
The Ontario Progressive Conservative party’s 2022 platform now bases its appeal in the claim that it can effectively get results and most competently manage the affairs of the province.
Since he was elected in 2018, Doug Ford and the Progressive Conservatives have made big changes to the province’s environmental policy, which some say are are harmful to endangered species and aren’t aligned with the fight against climate change.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Geoff Robins
The 2022 election looms as the most important for Ontario’s environment in the modern era, and its impact may echo for generations to come.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is seen before his government delivered the provincial 2022 budget at the Ontario legislature.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Ontario goes to the polls in a month, and Doug Ford will likely win again. Why? Because the Liberal and NDP leaders have failed to connect with the people of Ontario the way Ford has.
Protesters from across Canada came to the nation’s capital in Ottawa to demonstrate against vaccine mandates and other measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
Canada’s international reputation as a relatively peaceful country is at odds with the noisy protests by people opposed to measures aimed at preventing COVID-19.
An Ontario Provincial Police tactical officer looks on from the top hatch of an armoured vehicle at the Ambassador Bridge.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
The Ontario government has, under Doug Ford, revised policies and approaches in favour of developers. Policy reform is essential to address the growing problem of unaffordable housing.
Back to the drawing board? The Ontario government’s changes to third-party election spending laws could be amended to fairly balance people’s Charter rights with meeting legislative objectives.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geoff Robins
Provincial regulations have major implications for the freedom of expression exercised by individuals and organizations in Ontario in the months leading up to the June election.
In a time of COVID-19 uncertainty, adopting hybrid learning for children will only stress students and teachers further.
(Flickr/Phil Roeder)
We enter this election with eight signed child-care agreements and question marks over the fate of those deals if the Liberal’s gamble on a majority government fails.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford walks to his office in June 2020 as legislators debated the government’s legislation that enabled it to invoke the notwithstanding clause.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
By paying greater attention to the originally intended application of the Canadian Constitution’s notwithstanding clause, along with the diversity of lawmakers in Canada, there’s a better path forward.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks as Ontario Premier Doug Ford listens at a groundbreaking event at a gold mine in 2020.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
Ontario has historically been the province in Confederation most concerned about buoying Ottawa and limiting its own relative power for the sake of national unity. Doug Ford puts that legacy at risk.
A woman is pictured at the window of her west Toronto apartment in March 2020 as her landlord issued eviction notices at the start of the pandemic. Secure and affordable housing is a big concern of those collecting social assistance, whether it was CERB or provincial programs.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
CERB was a lifeline but no paradise, highlighting the struggles of social assistance recipients to get by on much less.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Christine Elliott walk to a news conference at Queen’s Park on April 16, 2021.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
The pandemic’s third wave has brought Ontario to the brink of catastrophe. The best options for controlling the situation are well understood, so why won’t the provincial government implement them?
Ontario Premier Doug Ford puts his mask on after announcing new lockdown measures at a press conference at Queen’s Park in Toronto on April 16, 2021. The government later walked back some of the announced restrictions.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
As the third wave ravages Ontario, there is public confusion and mistrust. Premier Ford’s flip-flops on restrictions indicate not just poor risk communications, but the lack of an informed plan.