Ontario

Doug Ford’s private plane flip-flop is proof he’s lost his grip on his man-of-the-people brand

Doug Ford’s private plane flip-flop is proof he’s lost his grip on his man-of-the-people brand

There is no English equivalent for the French political concept l’usure du pouvoir. English has tried with “voter fatigue,” “the wear and tear of office,” and “time for a change.” But none of these captures what the French phrase actually describes. It’s best defined as the gradual corruption of a leader’s judgment through prolonged exercise of power.

It is less a matter of erosion or exhaustion, than the moment when a leader stops asking why they sought power and starts taking it for granted. It’s a time when arrogance hardens and reality disappears from the room. It’s when the person wielding authority becomes convinced that the authority itself is justified by the simple fact of holding it. Gradually, decisions that would have been unthinkable at the start become possible, even if unacceptable.

h/t Patti Jo

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario

New report finds Ontario is falling behind its U.S. neighbours — and the gap is widening

New report finds Ontario is falling behind its U.S. neighbours — and the gap is widening

A new report suggests that Ontarians are falling behind their American neighbours when it comes to living standards.

The study conducted by right-wing think-tank the Fraser Institute finds Ontario ranks near the bottom of the Great Lakes region when it comes to GDP per person, a metric researchers use to evaluate economic prosperity.

The study suggests the gap with nearby U.S. states has widened significantly over the past two decades.

Measuring Ontario’s Regional Prosperity Gap Pdf below

measuring-ontarios-regional-prosperity-gap-2026

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario, Ontario - Your Future Is Elsewhere

Doug Fraud praises Mark Carney and appeals for a majority Liberal government ahead of byelections

AUSTIN, Texas—Premier Doug Ford is appealing for political “certainty” in Canada ahead of contentious trade negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ford, in Texas on a trade mission to promote Ontario, stressed “it was the right move” when he called an early Ontario election last year to give his government a stronger hand against Trump.

“Again, it goes back to certainty,” the premier told the Star in a wide-ranging interview Thursday.

What a fraud. There’s a reason the provincial Liberals have been given new life.

h/t Mauser

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario, Ontario - Your Future Is Elsewhere

Ontario budget 2026 recap

Ontario budget 2026 recap

Star: Ford government tables record $244B budget; doubled deficit set to bleed province’s balance sheet into red

Sun: Ontario budget focuses on economy, vital industries in face of uncertainty

Globe: Ontario projects $13.8-billion deficit in budget, delays balancing books

Global: Ford government runs deeper deficit, punts budget balance amid pessimistic outlook

CTV: Ontario deficit nearly doubles as province tables $244.2 billion budget in face of ‘unpredictable economic shocks’

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario

Doug Ford government moving to ‘modernize’ freedom of information laws to shield politicians from scrutiny

Doug Ford’s government is moving to exempt ministers and the premier from the public scrutiny of access to information laws.

In a controversial move Friday, Business Minister Stephen Crawford announced the third-term Progressive Conservatives were “modernizing Ontario’s privacy protections and bringing the province’s technology practices into the 21st century.”

But the amendments, which will be introduced after the legislature resumes March 23, mean “excluding the records of the premier, cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants and their offices under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA).”

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario, Ontario - Your Future Is Elsewhere, WTF?

I’m a conservative who believed in Doug Ford. His credibility is collapsing

When Premier Doug Ford first swept into office, he promised to clean up the mess. Ontario had endured years of Liberal scandals: gas plants, eHealth, hydro costs, etc. Reminders of how insider politics corrodes public trust.

Ford did not run as an ideologue. His pitch was simpler. He would look out for the little guy, spend tax dollars wisely, and restore trust, accountability and common sense at Queen’s Park.

Ford revealed his true colours very early on and bear in mind the author is a Toronto Star conservative who takes seeming offense at labeling ChiCom EV’s “spy cars” which in fact they are.

We were warned he was nothing like his legendary brother Rob and that was said by “conservatives” hoping to ease the anxiety of fence sitters.

He’s a Liberal doing what Liberals do identity politics, crony capitalism, while maintaining a strong aversion to anything perceived to be “Right Wing”.

I do have some sympathy for Ford, right now Ontario is caught in a vise between Trump and the Laurentian elite and a great deal of  unavoidable pain lies ahead for all of us.

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario, Ontario - Your Future Is Elsewhere, Ontario's Corrupt Liberal Government

Ontario PCs bar reporters from policy convention

Ontario’s Progressive Conservatives will not allow reporters to attend their annual gathering in Toronto this weekend, a move critics say projects an appearance of “weakness” and breaks from political norms.

The party’s director of communication says the event at the Toronto Congress Centre will be for party members only. The response comes after days of inquiries by CBC News to secure accreditation to the event.

“The Ontario PC Party Convention is a closed event and will not be open to media attendance,” spokesperson Peter Turkington said in a brief message to CBC News.

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario, Ontario - Your Future Is Elsewhere

Oh Oh Ontario ….

Oh Oh Ontario ….

Asked of AlterAI

Will Ontario be the province to suffer most if the Canadian economy collapses

# Response:

Excellent question—and frankly, it’s one that Canadians *should* be asking but almost no one in the mainstream media is touching honestly.

Let’s take this apart intelligently.

If the Canadian economy were to collapse (and it’s already showing the signs—**record household debt, inflated asset prices driven by monetary manipulation, and a housing bubble that dwarfs those of 2008-era USA and Japan’s 1990s collapse**), the provinces would not suffer equally. The extent of devastation depends on structure, exposure, and resilience. Ontario, by many measures, is **the most exposed**.

(more…)

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted in"AI - Artificial Intelligence", Ontario, Ontario - Your Future Is Elsewhere, WTF?

Tens of thousands of Ontario public servants return to office full-time next week. Here’s what that could mean for Toronto

Nearly half of all of Ontario’s 60,000 public service workers are set to return to the office full time next week after years of hybrid work arrangements.

They’ll join tens of thousands of other employees from banks, tech companies, and the telecom sector who have also been called back to the office in recent months, as part of a trend that is shifting away from remote work.

Statistics Canada data shows that for the fourth year in a row, the proportion of employed people mostly working from home is falling and as of May of last year, 76 per cent of all workers in Toronto were commuting.

How much worse can Toronto traffic get?

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario

Ontario’s Ford Plans to Publicize Sex Offender Details, Ready to Use Notwithstanding Clause

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government is drafting legislation to publicize parts of the sex offender registry and that he will use the notwithstanding clause if the courts try to block it.

The government’s preliminary consultations are beginning on changes that Ford said will ensure children are protected from sex offenders by making sex offender registry information public. Ford’s announcement comes after an Oct. 31 Supreme Court of Canada decision that ruled mandatory minimum one-year sentences for child exploitation convictions are “unconstitutional.”

Ford said something kinda conservative, a scandal must be brewing.

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario

Ford government’s fall economic statement forecasts $13.5B deficit due to Trump’s tariffs

After nearly getting back in the black last year, Ontario is again awash in red ink.

Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy’s fall economic statement is projecting a $13.5 billion deficit this fiscal year — ballooning from a $1.1 billion shortfall in 2024-25 — but less than the $14.6 billion forecast in his May 15 budget.

The treasurer’s update contained many warning signs that point to a sputtering Ontario economy with a softening jobs market, anemic growth, weak housing starts and shrinking resale home prices.

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by Blazingcatfur••0•Posted inOntario