Pattern
Rush major decisions through with minimal public consultation or legislative scrutiny.
Cumulative Documented Cost
Pattern Sequence
Minister's Zoning Orders (MZOs) issued 17x above historical rate, bypassing local planning (2019-23)
Bill 212 exempts Highway 413 from environmental assessment (2024)
Ontario Science Centre demolished before structural assessment publicized
Therme spa deal signed on 95-year lease without competitive bidding
Documentation
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On April 17, 2026, the Ontario government confirmed it had spent $28.9 million on a pre-owned 2016 Bombardier Challenger 650 jet for Premier Doug Ford's use. The province cited federal-provincial meetings and US tariff travel. Operating costs were not publicly disclosed at the time of announcement. NDP, Liberal, and Canadian Taxpayers Federation criticism was immediate; civic group NoJetsTO linked the purchase to the government's concurrent Billy Bishop Airport expansion plan under Bill 5.
On April 23, 2026, the Ford government passed Bill 97, rewriting Ontario's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to permanently exclude the Premier's Office, cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants, and all political staff from FOI requests. The changes are retroactive to 1988, nullify dozens of pending FOI cases, and override a court order directing Ford to release personal cellphone records. The Information and Privacy Commissioner said the law makes Ontario less transparent than any other Canadian jurisdiction. Democracy Watch is preparing a constitutional challenge. An Abacus Data poll found only 24% of Ontarians supported the policy (cited in Globe and Mail editorial, April 21, 2026).
The time the Ontario legislature spends sitting has been shrinking under the Ford government. Global News reported that in 2025 the legislature sat 51 days, taking a 19-week summer break and a 14-week winter break. On June 2, 2026 it rose again after a 30-day spring session and will not return until October 27, a 21-week break. Government House Leader Steve Clark said the timing avoids interfering with the fall municipal elections. Opposition leaders say the shrinking calendar reduces the chamber's ability to hold the government to account. This case tracks the pattern across sessions; each new break is logged as it happens.
Legislation stripped conservation authorities of their ability to block development, prioritizing construction over flood protection and environmental conservation.
In November 2025 the Ford government enacted the Water and Wastewater Public Corporations Act as Schedule 16 of omnibus Bill 60. In March 2026, CUPE Ontario released a legal opinion by Simon Archer of Goldblatt Partners, prepared jointly with the Ontario NDP, finding that the word "public" in the Act's name has no real legal effect and that the legislation does not guarantee the corporations will be publicly owned. Bill 98 later amended the Act to restrict share ownership to governments and "an agent of any of them," leaving "agent" undefined. A legal opinion by UBC law professor Joel Bakan — retained by CUPE — concluded the amendments "will have the same impacts on communities in terms of water services as a fully privatized scheme." Water corporations must be incorporated as for-profit entities under the Ontario Business Corporations Act. Peel Region is the pilot.
$742M in public training funds awarded to low-ranked applicants; 63% of funding went to PC party donors. Government now suing one recipient for fraud.
Ford's government issued 114 Minister's Zoning Orders between 2019-2023 — 17 times more than the previous 20 years combined. Agricultural land rezoned via MZOs saw an average 46% value increase. The 2024 Provincial Planning Statement further weakened farmland protections, accelerating Ontario's loss of 319 acres of farmland per day.
Courts ordered the Premier to turn over personal phone records used for government business.
Ontario's Court of Appeal cleared the province to proceed with removing 19 kilometres of Toronto bike lanes. On Sept. 1, 2026, the government issued an RFP for engineering design work to restore vehicle lanes on Bloor, Yonge, University, Queen's Park, and Avenue Road, and on Oct. 8 said removal on Bloor Street West would begin Oct. 13. Toronto says it spent $27M installing the lanes and estimates removal at $48M. A province-commissioned CIMA+ analysis projected that collisions involving all road users could rise by up to 54%.
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