Category: Provincial Politics

Ford Brings $2.5 Million Cheque to Guelph for Linamar to Make Ventilators

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The day after it was announced that Ontario had seen over 300 new cases of COVID-19 in a single day, Premier Doug Ford and members of his cabinet came to the Royal City with some money for a local company looking to shore up any future demands for medical equipment. Linamar, Guelph’s largest corporation, received $2.5 million from the Ontario Together Fund today to help build 10,000 new Ontario-made e700 ventilators. Continue reading “Ford Brings $2.5 Million Cheque to Guelph for Linamar to Make Ventilators” →

Schreiner Introduces Bill to End Sick Notes

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The Ontario Legislature returned to work today, and one of the first orders of business came from Guelph’s own Member of Provincial Parliament. Mike Schreiner spent his first day back at the Legislature putting forward a private member’s bill to amend the Employment Standards Act and disavow the part that allows employers to demand a sick note from an employee that takes a day off due to illness. Continue reading “Schreiner Introduces Bill to End Sick Notes” →

Steal These Ideas Part 2, Schreiner Has Plans for a Better Recovery

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In the past, Guelph MPP and Green Party of Ontario leader Mike Schreiner has gone to the media studio in Queen’s Park, and presented ideas for the reigning Progressive Conservative government to implement. On Thursday, he did it again by offering 10 principles for a “Greener and More Caring COVID-19 Recovery”, but will the Premier Doug Ford take him up on the offer? Continue reading “Steal These Ideas Part 2, Schreiner Has Plans for a Better Recovery” →

Court Says Gas Tax Stickers Are Political and Unconstitutional

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To recall with longing the good old days when the worst political controversy was the Ontario government making provincial gas stations post partisan information under threat of heavy fines… Those days were revisited again on Friday with the Ontario Superior Court ruling that the anti-carbon tax stickers gas stations were ordered to display are actually unconstitutional. Continue reading “Court Says Gas Tax Stickers Are Political and Unconstitutional” →

Schreiner Wants Less Cheerleading More Regular Leading from Ford

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The annual Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference wrapped up on Wednesday with some speeches from opposition leaders including Green Party of Ontario leader and Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner. After Premier Doug Ford’s somewhat rosy appraisal of the current response to COVID-19 on Monday, Schreiner notes there’s still a long, long way to go, and a lot of stuff that’s been overlooked by the provincial government. Continue reading “Schreiner Wants Less Cheerleading More Regular Leading from Ford” →

At AMO, Ford is Optimistic While the City of Guelph Comes with a Wish List

Published on by Adam A. Donaldson1 Comment

The annual conference of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) kicked off Monday in an unusual way: remotely. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, representatives from many of Ontario’s 444 municipalities will not be descending on Ottawa this week, but will instead be meeting via teleconference, and the effects of the pandemic will definitely be a big part of the conversations. Continue reading “At AMO, Ford is Optimistic While the City of Guelph Comes with a Wish List” →

Ontario Government Finally Announces Plans for Long Term Care Review

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COVID-19 has ravaged long-term care homes here in Ontario and across Canada, and a lot of people have been wondering why. A report from the Canadian Forces back in May started pointing some fingers, but now the Provincial government is going to start a more formal process. Ontario is finally launching its independent long-term care COVID-19 commission, but some people think we should already know the answer. Continue reading “Ontario Government Finally Announces Plans for Long Term Care Review” →

Cambridge MPP Tossed From Caucus After Voting Against Her Party

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It’s never an easy thing to vote against your own party, especially when that party forms the government in power. As they say, “Elections have consequences”, but so does defiance, and Progressive Conservative MPP Belinda Karahalios paid the price on Tuesday when she was tossed from her own caucus for voting against the government on extending emergency powers. Continue reading “Cambridge MPP Tossed From Caucus After Voting Against Her Party” →

Ontario Government Makes Move to Protect Vulnerable from Payday Loans

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There’s been a lot of discussion in the last several years about payday loan and cheque cashing businesses, specifically about whether or not these businesses target the vulnerable, and exploit them due to their business model. Those issues may have taken on a new urgency because of the pandemic, as have all issues around finance and the social safety net, and the Provincial government has decided to make some changes. Continue reading “Ontario Government Makes Move to Protect Vulnerable from Payday Loans” →

Ontario Government Releases Plan to Re-Open Schools in the Fall

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The school year is almost over, but the planning for next year is now a less opaque thanks to an announcement from Queen’s Park on Friday. Education Minister Stephen Lecce took part in Friday’s press conference where the Government of Ontario laid out how the province’s schools will operate in the fall, and it will have to be multiple choice as school boards must prepare three different plans in case of the circumstances. Continue reading “Ontario Government Releases Plan to Re-Open Schools in the Fall” →