Ontario’s provincial members of parliament are heading back to Queen’s Park today, as the legislature sits for the first time since December. The governing Progressive Conservatives recessed the legislature on Dec. 11 for an unusually long winter break, which the opposition has called undemocratic. The spring session should be a busy one, with the budget […]

Ontario will declare Toronto’s island airport the province’s first special economic zone as it takes over land owned by the city, Premier Doug Ford said Monday in a move opposed by the mayor. This is the latest development in the Ford government’s push for an expansion of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to include jets. […]

Ontario’s legislature is set to resume sitting Monday after a 14-week break that ended in a veritable deluge of news, partial proposals and headline-grabbing musings from Premier Doug Ford and his government. It is a flood-the-zone strategy, opposition parties say, in an attempt to drown out criticism over a government plan to keep records of […]

Ontario is planning to create a provincewide electronic medical record system for primary care, more than two decades after the government first embarked on what became a scandal-plagued eHealth project. Health Minister Sylvia Jones announced Thursday that the province is starting by talking to potential vendors about what is possible. “(It’s asking) do you have […]

Ontario drivers may soon be able to use high-occupancy vehicle lanes at times, even if they are all by themselves. Premier Doug Ford’s government is proposing to amend the Highway Traffic Act to allow single-occupant vehicles to use the HOV lanes during off-peak hours, saying it would reduce travel times and ease gridlock. “It’s pretty […]

Ontario is set to make Premier Doug Ford and cabinet members’ records secret as it “modernizes” freedom-of-information laws, a change the province’s privacy watchdog warns will eviscerate public accountability. Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement Minister Stephen Crawford, however, said his government is still “one of the most transparent governments in the history of […]

Hat on. Glasses lowered. Notes in hand. Ian Sinclair moves toward the podium with the deliberate steps of a man who has come prepared, not just to speak, but to challenge. Conversations hush and heads turn, intently. In Caledon’s council chamber, his confident walk and heavy voice are a familiar sight, and a comforting one […]

An Ontario police watchdog is launching an inspection of the province’s police services and boards to assess their ability to prevent, detect and respond to corruption, after seven current Toronto officers were among those charged in an organized crime investigation. Inspector general Ryan Teschner, a former executive director of the Toronto Police Services Board, announced […]

Three Peel Regional Police officers have been suspended in connection to a corruption and organized crime investigation that led to criminal charges against 27 suspects, including seven Toronto police officers and one retired officer. Const. Tyler Bell-Morena says the force west of Toronto has administratively suspended three officers, pending further investigation by York Regional Police. […]

A police oversight body in Ontario could be soon faced with the most high-profile test of its newly vested powers as it considers launching an investigation into alleged Toronto police corruption.  The inspector general, a relatively new arm’s-length position tasked by the province with overseeing policing, was asked to investigate Thursday after eight current and […]

Eight current and retired Toronto police officers have been charged in an organized crime and corruption investigation.  The sprawling investigation led by York Regional Police, whose initial results were announced Thursday, alleges Toronto officers provided personal information used to carry out crimes including shootings, robberies and a murder plot. Investigators allege some officers also trafficked […]

Eight current and retired Toronto police officers have been charged in an organized crime and corruption investigation.  The sprawling investigation led by York regional police alleges Toronto officers provided personal information used to carry out crimes including shootings, robberies and a murder plot. Investigators allege some officers also trafficked cocaine and accepted bribes to support […]