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Ontario Premier Doug Ford attends Question Period in October, 2024.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
Doug Ford is set to face pointed questions about unemployment rates, conflict-of-interest allegations and the state of core services such as health care and education when Ontario’s legislature returns on Monday, as opposition leaders look to find new ways to challenge the popular long-time Premier.
Ontario’s political parties are returning to Queen’s Park next week after Mr. Ford’s government extended the legislature’s summer break, which lasted almost five months.
The Premier, however, dominated headlines in the summer and fall, holding regular news conferences and speaking at events.
He garnered attention when he poured out a bottle of Crown Royal whisky to protest parent company Diageo’s decision to close its Amherstburg bottling plant, and at a separate event, ate an ice-cream bar at the podium while announcing a $27-million interest-free loan for Chapman’s to build a new factory.
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Mr. Ford bites into an ice cream as he takes questions from the media during an availability at Chapman’s Ice Cream in Markdale, Ont., on Sept. 19.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
Meanwhile, the two main opposition parties have faced internal struggles of their own, with Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie vowing to step down after disappointing leadership-review results and NDP members offering a tepid endorsement of Leader Marit Stiles.
But both parties say they see an opportunity this session to break through.
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Ms. Stiles, in an interview, said she’s heard fear and frustration across the province over unemployment rates and layoffs, and that Mr. Ford’s performative moments are “wearing thin,” citing his recent tale about stopping a shoplifter outside of a Home Depot and threatening to beat him up.
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NDP Leader Marit Stiles speaks during Question Period at Queen’s Park in May.Cole Burston/The Canadian Press
“It’s story time with Doug. Today, he’s Batman, yesterday, he was Captain Canada. But where are the actual results of this?” she said.
“He is the Premier, he has power to actually make a difference. And I think that his stories, and his bluster, and his stunts, frankly – they’re amusing – but they’re actually not solving the problems that people have.”
The Liberals – who are currently deciding on the rules of the next leadership race – are still technically led by Ms. Crombie, who hasn’t made any public appearances since her resignation on Sept. 14. Parliamentary Leader John Fraser, a long-time Liberal MPP, said his party’s caucus of 14 will continue to hold Mr. Ford to account.
He believes that the first week of Question Period will be dominated by the government’s skills development program. The $1.3-billion fund, which hands out money to unions and businesses to retrain workers, was recently the subject of an Ontario Auditor-General’s report, who said the distribution of funds was “not fair, transparent or accountable.”
Auditor-General Shelley Spence also said political staff handed out hundreds of millions of dollars for groups with lower scores on their applications while higher-ranked applicants were passed over.
The report says many applicants retained professional lobbyists, and 64 low- and medium-ranked applicants who had lobbied the minister’s office ended up with $126-million in funding.
Mr. Ford and his Labour Minister, David Piccini, have defended the fund as a worthwhile initiative, saying it’s the best investment his government has ever made.
Mr. Fraser calls it “the special donors fund.”
He, too, said the public is tiring of Mr. Ford’s performances, with little to show by way of improvements to core services such as schools or hospitals.
“It’s like he’s chasing a viral moment. And it’s like, that’s not government, this is not entertainment,” he said. “It’s fine to try and connect with people, but they have to deliver.”
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Long-time Liberal MPP John Fraser speaks with media at Queen’s Park, in September, 2022.Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press
Laryssa Waler, Mr. Ford’s former executive director of communications and now a managing partner at public affairs firm Henley Strategies, said the opposition does not understand Mr. Ford’s appeal.
“When the public looks at Doug Ford, they see someone who genuinely cares about people, and that is genuinely likeable,” she said. “No matter what the opposition say, they’re not going to convince the public it isn’t true.”
The government, for its part, is still directing its attention to U.S. President Donald Trump and the economic impact of the tariffs.
Mr. Ford’s office said the government is taking a “hard look” at challenges that hold the province back and putting forward “big and bold ideas” to build a competitive and resilient economy, and to support workers and businesses.
The government is focusing on shoring up nuclear and critical-minerals projects, mandating Ontario-made products, and finding more ways to lower fees, costs and taxes, said spokesperson Hannah Jensen, adding that the province is also speeding up building infrastructure, transit and factories to create new jobs and investment conditions.
Erin Morrison, a long-time NDP staffer and vice-president of Texture Communications, said her party has previously bounced around on too many issues and needs a “laser-like” focus on its key message, which is jobs.
“They need to stick to their guns on it,” she said, adding the party should also take advantage of the “leaderless” Liberals.
She said Ms. Stiles, who only earned 68-per-cent support in her September leadership review, needs to show her membership she has “fire in the belly and come out swinging.”
Scott Reid, a principal at Feschuk.Reid and onetime senior aide to former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin, said the provincial party needs to focus all of their attention on one person: Mr. Ford.
“If you want to topple this army, you have to take down the king,” he said.
