By Jessica Bell
The Ford government’s Bill 39 is a direct attack on representative democracy. The bill bulldozes local decision-making so Doug Ford can wield more power while making it easier for his developer friends to get rich paving over the Greenbelt.
By the HVRA and the ARA
Bill 23, the provincial government’s promise to build 1.5 million homes by 2031 is nothing short of an early Christmas gift to developers.
There’s no guarantee homes will be built, there’s nothing to ensure they will be affordable, and there’s no help for renters.
Usually around Christmas I like to write about ways to lower our personal environmental footprints during the holidays, but none of that matters in the face of the complete political failure we are facing. This year, rather than buying gifts for kids or grandkids, they need you to get out there and fight for them.
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Tags: Annex · Editorial · Opinion
The Public Order Emergency Commission (POEC) is reviewing Ottawa’s use of the Emergencies Act to break up the “Freedom Convoy” in Ottawa and at border crossings last winter. Their work involves hearing the testimony of people involved, including senior civil servants. In the past, premiers have testified in such commissions, despite the fact that the commission’s mandate is to hold all levels of government to account for the events that led to Prime Minister Trudeau’s invocation of the Emergencies Act last winter.
Tags: Annex · Editorial · Opinion
RE: Grading our Greenspace (Aug. 2022)
Grading Our Greenspace (by Fox Oliver, Annex Gleaner, August 2022) is most interesting but rather cruel to The Doctors’ Parkette which rates it as Grade C and describes it as “easily missed” and “doesn’t particularly stand out or offer any unique amenities,” with no mention of the Major Street Parkette, or its kidnapped erratic.
By Jessica Bell
Now that the provincial and city elections are over, the real Doug Ford has stepped out from behind the veneer of moderation. The Premier has unleashed his aggressive plan to spur suburban sprawl, parking lots, and highways across the Greater Golden Horseshoe area, at the expense of farmland, renters, municipal services, and all-important climate change goals.
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Tags: Annex · Editorial · Opinion
In November of last year Mayor John Tory announced a new small business tax that was meant to reduce the property tax burden that small businesses must pay to the city. In theory, this meant an across the board decrease of 15 per cent for properties that met two criteria: lot size and value. It turns out however, that the methodology chosen by the city is so flawed that it appears that as many as 20 per cent of properties will not get the break even though they meet the requirements.
Tags: Annex · Editorial · Opinion
By Jessica Bell
Last month, I went on a “welfare diet” and lived on a grocery budget of $47.60 a week for two weeks to pressure the Ford government to double social assistance rates.
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Tags: Annex · Editorial · Opinion
The province is dissolving Ontario’s independent COVID-19 Science Advisory Table and replacing it with, what one member described, as its exact antithesis. The science table didn’t hesitate to bring attention to facts the government didn’t want to hear, but which the public needed to know.
Tags: Annex · Editorial · Opinion
By Jessica Bell
Queen’s Park Roundup
The Ford government is passing damaging legislation in the middle of the summer while attention on politics is low. Here’s what’s happening.
The government’s 2022-2023 budget falls short