Doug Ford admits process ‘should have been better’ in Ontario’s Greenbelt swap

While emphasizing the need for more housing, Ontario Premier Doug Ford admitted to a flawed process in the Greenbelt land swap last fall.

Ontario’s Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk’s special report on Greenbelt dropped today (Aug. 9).

Lysyk found the government’s decision in 2022 to remove 7,400 acres of environmentally protected land Greenbelt for development failed to consider environmental, agricultural and financial risks and impacts, proceeded with little input from experts or affected parties, and favoured certain developers/landowners.

The report also questioned the role of Ryan Amato, the chief of staff to Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark, in selecting the plots of Greenbelt land.

Both Ford and Clark admitted they moved too quickly and didn’t evaluate Amato’s proposal.

“We could have had a better process,” Ford said at the press conference today (Aug. 9). “As Premier, the buck stops with me. And I take full responsibility for the need for a better process.”

The process was too fast and they need to do better, Clark added.

“Moving forward, we’ve been very clear that there needs to be a better process to how the government and all ministries receive information,” Clark said. “We concur with the auditor general’s recommendation.”

Ford and Clark denied getting any benefits from the land swap.

Ford said 14 of the 15 recommendations from the report will move forward but they will not reverse the decision to remove the land from the Greenbelt. Clark said the problem is too severe and they need to push ahead with home developments.

Throughout the press conference Ford spoke about the federal government’s push on immigration, which is bringing thousands of people to Ontario. He also pointed to the lack of affordable housing and people’s inability to buy a home.

He reiterated his pledge to build 1.5 million homes.

“We have two choices: We can build more homes or we can sit back and let the crisis get worse. Our government is choosing to build,” Ford said.

But the opposition isn’t buying it. Owners of the 15 land sites removed from the Greenbelt could ultimately see more than an $8.3 billion increase in the value of their properties.

“Today’s AG report confirms what we’ve been saying all along: while everyday Ontarians struggle to get by, Conservatives side with well-connected insiders,” said NDP leader Marit Stiles.

Both the Liberals and NDP called for Clark to be fired and for the government to reverse the decision to remove the land from the Greenbelt.

In a press release, the Ontario Liberals suggested Amato was influenced by prominent and wealthy developers to remove 92 per cent of the Greenbelt land. These developers had inside access to ministry staff, and would be the direct beneficiaries of the land swaps.

“There is no way on God’s green Earth that Minister Clark’s Chief of Staff acted without the Minister’s full knowledge or direction,” said MPP John Fraser. “Ministers make decisions; their Chiefs of Staff implement them.”

Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie, in her capacity as a candidate for the provincial Liberals, criticized Ford in the wake of the report.

“Doug Ford and his Conservative government can’t be trusted,” Crombie said in a statement.

Crombie said the Ford government is “abusing its power and wilfully ignoring the legislated protection of the Greenbelt.”

“I call for a full investigation by appropriate and independent authorities to be launched immediately.”

To see the full press conference, visit CPAC here. See the full Ontario Auditor General report here.