Provincial

Tom Rakocevic, MPP for Humber River-Black Creek, slammed the Ford Conservatives for voting yesterday to let auto insurance companies keep gouging Ontario drivers. The Conservatives voted down Rakocevic’s private member’s bill, Lower Automobile Insurance Rates Act, on second reading. The bill proposed to bring Ontario drivers relief from sky-high auto insurance rates by capping excessive profit margins of auto insurance ...

NDP Official Opposition MPP Catherine Fife released the following statement on news that Doug Ford is planning to redesign Ontario licence plates to force on his “open for business” campaign slogan onto Ontario vehicles:   “Doug Ford’s ridiculous scheme to turn vehicles into political billboards is a new low in self-serving electioneering. Redesigning our licence plates to be Ford ads ...

Each year, officers in the North East Region investigate more than 700 calls relating to Fraud. Unfortunately, in many of these cases, people have fallen victim to the scam, losing money in the process. The CAFC estimates that they only receive information about 5% of fraud that occurs in Canada. They identify four of the top scams in 2018 in Canada as: ...

To mark World Water Day, Ontario’s government is working for the people to protect the water quality and ecosystems of the Great Lakes as part of its commitment in the Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan. On April 23, Rod Phillips, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, will convene the Great Lakes Guardians’ Council, in memory of Josephine Mandamin, to discuss emerging issues ...

Kiiwetinoong MPP Sol Mamakwa, the NDP’s Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation critic said that today, on World Water Day, the Ford government must act so that Indigenous people can have the same access to safe drinking water as all Ontarians.     “Today is World Water Day.   The United Nations theme this year, is ‘Leaving no one behind.’   When ...

The launch of Ontario’s maple syrup season is right on schedule for 2019, and producers across the province are looking forward to showcasing a new crop of sweet liquid gold during the 5th annual MapleWeekend, April 6 and 7, 2019. Hosted by the Ontario Maple Syrup Producers’ Association (OMSPA), Maple Weekend is a fun, free, two-day, family-friendly event that celebrates ...

Doug Ford’s deep cuts to students and classrooms, announced Friday, will mean thousands fewer teachers, bigger class sizes, and less help for every student. NDP Education critic Marit Stiles said the Official Opposition will oppose the callous cuts to children and learning.   The Ford Conservatives’ new scheme for children includes raising caps on class sizes starting in Grade 4, ...

Charles Harnick, Q.C., L.S.M. has been nominated as the new Chair of Legal Aid Ontario. “Charles Harnick has a long-standing commitment to improving access to justice and a track record of achieving results,” said Attorney General Caroline Mulroney. “I have no doubt that Charles will be focused on improving outcomes for Legal Aid Ontario’s clients.” “The Law Society believes that legal ...

The Ford Government continues to forge ahead with their roguish changes to Ontario’s health care system despite the outcry from the public and many public health care authorities. For decades, Ontarians have had access to one of the premier public health care systems in the world. Now, after years of underfunding and cuts by successive Liberal and Conservative governments, Ontarians ...

NDP MPP Ian Arthur, the Official Opposition critic for the Environment and Sustainability, will lay out the details of his comprehensive private member’s bill, which calls on Ontario to ban single-use, throw-away plastics this morning. “Our landfills are piled high with plastic garbage that will take generations to degrade, and our lakes and rivers — and waters around the world ...

After blowing nearly $200 million in payouts and golden handshakes in his meddling at Hydro One, Doug Ford has now set the annual compensation for the new Hydro One CEO at a whopping $1.5 million. The CEO of Hydro-Quebec is paid about $800,000 in base salary and bonuses. The CEO of Hydro One before the Liberals privatized it was paid ...

NDP MPP Ian Arthur, the Official Opposition critic for the Environment and Sustainability, is laying out the details of his private member’s bill — one that will ban all single-use plastics in Ontario by 2025, with the worst offenders being banned in 2020. “Our kids and grandkids deserve to have clean drinking water, clean air to breathe and unpolluted soil ...

NDP Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath released the following statement in response to the Ford government’s appointment of a new Commissioner for the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP): “I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to Deputy Chief Thomas Carrique on his appointment as the new OPP commissioner. I look forward to meeting him, and wish him well in his ...

Marit Stiles, Ontario NDP Education critic, said the Ford Conservatives’ announcement falls woefully short of what will be needed as cuts to autism services send an influx of kids with high needs into the school system on April 1.   Educators and parents have been raising concerns about a lack of resources in schools with increasing urgency since the Ford ...

Through an Order-In-Council signed by cabinet, Ontario’s Government for the People announced the appointment of Thomas Carrique as the next Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police. Thomas Carrique currently serves as the Deputy Chief for the York Regional Police, where he has spent his entire 29-year career with the force. He has worked in a variety of fields, including Uniform ...