Episode 25

25: All the Premier's Men - Developers, Donations and the Destruction of Environmental Protections

November 26, 202034m 22s

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Show Notes

Leading on from Tuesday's episode looking at the proposed changes to the Conservation Authorities, Joel and Roland discuss the connection between political donations and the policy priorities of the Ford government. If any single subject can be said to encapsulate the priorities of the provincial government since 2018, it must be the efforts to weaken the legislative checks and balances on what can be built where, and who gets to have a voice in shaping development proposals.

Bill 108 was described by the Mayor of Oakville in 2018 as 'Developer Welfare'. This year's budget omnibus (Bill 229) contains 'pay to slay' legislation that weakens wildlife protection, and undermines protections provided by conservation authorities. The cast-iron protections on the green belt have been weakened multiple times. Municipalities face impossible deadlines to respond to development proposals that are inevitably appealed or settled by negotiations that routinely exceed planning limits and give the developer most of what they want.

Why? Does this benefit average Ontarian? Was this a priority for voters in 2018? Or is it more to do with where the PCs see their most generous financial donations coming from?