Premier Doug Ford's Ontario

[Dan416]

I think there is duplication between the region and the cities that could be eliminated. For example, let the cities deal with the roads. There's no need for Regional Roads in Mississauga and Brampton. Caledon is different, and Caledon always throws things out of whack in Peel. I still think Caledon should be put under Dufferin County instead. Mississauga and Brampton are more similar and could each deal with their own roads, and then the regional roads in Caledon could be handled by Simcoe County.

For planning, I suppose they could do the same. Let Mississauga and Brampton do their own planning. Peel doesn't need to be involved in that per se, other than to deal with garbage and water and police.

 

[ShonTron]

I think there is duplication between the region and the cities that could be eliminated. For example, let the cities deal with the roads. There's no need for Regional Roads in Mississauga and Brampton. Caledon is different, and Caledon always throws things out of whack in Peel. I still think Caledon should be put under Dufferin County instead. Mississauga and Brampton are more similar and could each deal with their own roads, and then the regional roads in Caledon could be handled by Simcoe County.

For planning, I suppose they could do the same. Let Mississauga and Brampton do their own planning. Peel doesn't need to be involved in that per se, other than to deal with garbage and water and police.

I agree with you on roads. There’s no logical pattern to which roads are local and regional, especially in Mississauga. But I disagree on Caledon, because of how its growing. Bolton is quite urbanized these days, and the strip lining Mayfield Road is practically an extension of Brampton. If Brampton took over everything south of King Street, including all of Bolton, it might make sense to send the rural and exurban remainder to Dufferin County.

 

[adma]

I agree with you on roads. There’s no logical pattern to which roads are local and regional, especially in Mississauga. But I disagree on Caledon, because of how its growing. Bolton is quite urbanized these days, and the strip lining Mayfield Road is practically an extension of Brampton. If Brampton took over everything south of King Street, including all of Bolton, it might make sense to send the rural and exurban remainder to Dufferin County.

Regional roads are to present-day Mississauga & Brampton what signed highways like 2 and 5 and 11 and 11A were to the pre-Y2K 416. And at least the latter, even if they were technically under municipal jurisdiction in the Metro era, had some kind of historical red-line-on-the-map "mother road network" logic behind them--there's no such "mother road network" logic behind the regional roads of Brampton & Mississauga, they're about as dispensable as one can get...

 

[lenaitch]

The premise in most two-tier municipalities the premise regarding roads is the upper tier looks after the arterial routes. That is supposed to ensure consistency across local borders, especially in matters such as winter maintenance, but there is no reason that can't be done locally. The County of Frontenac maintains no roads; all are maintained by the local municipalities.

If Brampton took over everything south of King Street, including all of Bolton, it might make sense to send the rural and exurban remainder to Dufferin County.

The problem I have with something like this is, like annexation, it takes the cream of the tax base and leaves a rump of a municipality. There is really no reason Caledon can't manage the land just as effectively as Brampton would, with or without upper tier planning and infrastructure.

Something similar is floating around Barrie right now. The city floated the idea of an amenable annexation of chunks of Oro-Medonte and Springwater, for 'employment lands' but got no bites. Innisfil chimed it to remind them that when they gobbled up parts of their town, exactly none of it has become employment land.

 

[Jonny5]

I see there is a new Ontario Conservative ad out attacking Bonnie Crombie because she...

get this...

the new Ontario Liberal leader...

IS FRIENDS WITH JUSTIN TRUDEAU

I know you are all totally like this right now.

 

[Thinker]

I see there is a new Ontario Conservative ad out attacking Bonnie Crombie because she...

get this...

the new Ontario Liberal leader...

IS FRIENDS WITH JUSTIN TRUDEAU

I know you are all totally like this right now.

AND she has a summer home… not unlike the 4 season cottage in the Muskogas

 

[Towered]

AND she has a summer home… not unlike the 4 season cottage in the Muskogas

She's probably neighbours with Doug and they have lakeside beers together, laughing at the Ontario electorate together...

 

[christiesplits]

The Greenbelt scandal means the Ontario PCs are cancelling their most lucrative fundraiser:

Doug Ford's Tories set to abandon lucrative fundraiser in wake of Greenbelt scandal

The "leader's dinner" set a record for Canadian political parties last March, bringing in $6 million to the Progressive Conservatives' campaign coffers.

www.thestar.com

Meanwhile, both and Ontario Liberals and Ontario NDP are reporting record fundraising figures:

Bonnie Crombie smashes fundraising target as Liberals collect $1.2 million

Rookie Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie has eclipsed her target of raising $1 million in a month for the third-place party.

www.thestar.com

Stiles’ NDP smashes end-of-year fundraising record

Grassroots NDP receives three times more contributions than Crombie’s corporate Liberals

www.ontariondp.ca

 

[Northern Light]

The Globe and Mail reporting that Queen's University is in financial trouble, running a large in-year deficit (about 48M this year) for the second year in a row, and that it will likely run out of financial reserves to cover the losses next year.

Queen’s University eyes drastic cutbacks to keep its doors open

Queen’s provost Matthew Evans says he’s concerned ‘about the survival of this institution’

www.theglobeandmail.com

Within the story (behind the paywall) it is also noted that at least 10 of the province's universities are similarly in a deficit position.

Ontario, it is noted, provides the lowest per capita funding for Universities of any province.

Reckoning, it would seem, is coming.

Either alot of new dollars will flow in the provincial budget this spring, or there will be a very deep shakeup in the post-secondary sector.

In turn, that alone would mean a larger deficit or a material tax hike.

There are so many proverbial fires burning right now, with under-staffed hospitals, excessive wait times, schools struggling to stay staffed, many municipalities facing significant tax hikes and poverty climbing as well.

*****

Time for the province (long since time) to admit we can't get by on current taxation levels, and a rise is in order; particularly on the sales tax front.

 

[adma]

DoFo probably, in his heart: "let 'em burn. Career colleges are the way to go"

 

[DSC]

DoFo probably, in his heart: "let 'em burn. Career colleges are the way to go"

Indeed, particularly those that are privately-operated and for-profit ones.

 

[Richard White]

The Globe and Mail reporting that Queen's University is in financial trouble, running a large in-year deficit (about 48M this year) for the second year in a row, and that it will likely run out of financial reserves to cover the losses next year.

Queen’s University eyes drastic cutbacks to keep its doors open

Queen’s provost Matthew Evans says he’s concerned ‘about the survival of this institution’

www.theglobeandmail.com

Within the story (behind the paywall) it is also noted that at least 10 of the province's universities are similarly in a deficit position.

Ontario, it is noted, provides the lowest per capita funding for Universities of any province.

Reckoning, it would seem, is coming.

Either alot of new dollars will flow in the provincial budget this spring, or there will be a very deep shakeup in the post-secondary sector.

In turn, that alone would mean a larger deficit or a material tax hike.

There are so many proverbial fires burning right now, with under-staffed hospitals, excessive wait times, schools struggling to stay staffed, many municipalities facing significant tax hikes and poverty climbing as well.

*****

Time for the province (long since time) to admit we can't get by on current taxation levels, and a rise is in order; particularly on the sales tax front.

The thing is Doug Ford will not raise taxes because it goes everything he stands for and everything he claims to believe in. It would kill his political career.

He has been railing against the Liberals, NDP and even Olivia Chow for wanting to raise taxes. Can you imagine what would happen if he did?

Another thing to consider is that Ford Nation was built on finding efficiencies and stopping the gravy train. I can see Ford trying to "make things more efficient" before raising taxes.

 

[Thinker]

The thing is Doug Ford will not raise taxes because it goes everything he stands for and everything he claims to believe in. It would kill his political career.

He has been railing against the Liberals, NDP and even Olivia Chow for wanting to raise taxes. Can you imagine what would happen if he did?

Another thing to consider is that Ford Nation was built on finding efficiencies and stopping the gravy train. I can see Ford trying to "make things more efficient" before raising taxes.

We are forgetting Dougie is sitting on a whole pile of money, unspent money he got for healthcare, strong rumours are it will be spent when the elections are close.

 

[old boy]

We are forgetting Dougie is sitting on a whole pile of money, unspent money he got for healthcare, strong rumours are it will be spent when the elections are close.

A foregone conclusion, I'd say. Buck-a-beer awaits.

 

[christiesplits]

Toronto Star: Internal email suggests Doug Ford's office knew Greenbelt land swap details earlier than claimed​

A recently discovered internal email related to the $8.28-billion Greenbelt scandal suggests Doug Ford's office "was far more involved" in the controversial land swap than the premier has maintained.

The missive, obtained by the opposition New Democrats through a freedom of information request, contradicts testimony given under oath to the integrity commissioner last year.

At issue is an Oct. 17, 2022 email exchange — on their private accounts instead of on government servers — between Patrick Sackville, then the premier's principal secretary and now his chief of staff, and Ryan Amato, at the time the top aide to then-municipal affairs minister Steve Clark.

Internal email suggests Doug Ford’s office knew Greenbelt land swap details earlier than claimed

An internal email related to the Greenbelt scandal suggests Ford's office "was far more involved" in the land swap than the premier has maintained.

www.thestar.com