The Auditor-General’s scathing Greenbelt report identified several points at which the process failed
on non-political staff members, as has been alleged in a report from Ontario’s Auditor-General on the Greenbelt decision-making process. The deputy minister would have known that these shenanigans would be uncovered in the cabinet decision-making process and would have put a stop to them, or at the very least required written confirmation from the minister that this was on his or her orders.
If an item like the Greenbelt changes still proceeded, the confidential briefing documents for cabinet would not have omitted answers to obvious questions: What is the evidence for Greenbelt land being needed to meet housing targets? What was the process for identifying the land to be extracted from the Greenbelt? Did the process conform with established criteria and, if not, why? How long would it take to build infrastructure to support major tracts of development? What would it cost and who...
The Auditor-General’s scathing Greenbelt report identified several points at which the Greenbelt decision-making process failed. She recommended that the government adopt measures to prevent future breakdowns of this magnitude. Fortunately, the government should not have to look too far for ideas. The necessary safeguards have been routinely practised by past Ontario governments.
This is not to say that the Greenbelt mess would have been impossible in the 1990s. No amount of due diligence by gatekeepers can override a determined premier. A cabinet secretary or premier’s chief of staff can inform and advise, often strongly, but the premier ultimately decides. So, what really happened in those Whitney Block briefing rooms in 2022? We have no idea, but something is rotten in the state rooms of Queen’s Park. If the Ford government has gutted the due-diligence process put in place by previous Ontario governments, who is ultimately responsible for the multiple failures documented by the Auditor-General? Where were the guardrails?
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